Subway has been in the restaurant industry news quite a bit lately. After unveiling a new $6 Footlong promotion just a few weeks ago, the world’s largest sandwich company recently announced the addition of premium ingredients to its menu.
While the new ingredients are just hitting stores as we speak, we wanted to get ahead of the launch and see how consumers are reacting to the news. If our data on similar moves by other restaurants is any indication, this move could bear major fruit (or meat) for Subway.
Take a look:
Our sample of 1,451 US adult respondents paint a pretty picture for Subway. 1/5th of the 30% of US consumers (or 6% of the US population overall) who already dine at Subway say they are now likely to eat there more often, thanks to the new ingredients. Even more impressive, a full 10% of respondents say they don’t eat there regularly but the new ingredients will bring them in. In other words, Subway could expect as many as 25% of its diners in coming months to be first-time or lapsed customers. That’s huge.
Where will the gains come from? First, it looks like a lot of younger consumers are responding well. 16% of people aged 18-24 say they are regular diners who are planning to eat there more. And the new customers? Those look to be a bit older. 12% of 35-44 year-olds say they don’t eat Subway regularly but will now. Men and women were evenly divided, so no big news there.
How does Subway’s move stack up with some other recent new QSR menu items when it comes to bringing in non-diners? Using the same question format, we saw that 8% of consumers say they don’t regularly eat at Burger King but plan to try their new flame-frilled hot dogs. Wendy’s new bakery-style bun and foil wrapping: 7%. Burger King Jalapeno Chicken Fries: 4%. Chick-fil-A kale and broccolini salad: 5%.
Time will tell and a lot will depend on the marketing. But it looks like a winning move for Subway out of the gates.