In 1965, Fred DeLuca borrowed $1,000 from his friend Peter Buck to start "Pete's Drive-In: Super Submarines" at 3851 Main Street[18] in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and in the following year, they formed Doctor's Associates Inc. to oversee operations of the restaurants as the franchise expanded.

[19][20] The holding company derives its name from DeLuca's goal to earn enough from the business to pay tuition for medical school, as well as Buck's having a doctorate in physics.

According to Abha Bhattarai of The Washington Post, this was a result of three consecutive years of falling profits and a 25 percent reduction in foot traffic in Subway stores since 2012.

[citation needed] In January 2018, Subway invested $25 million in a re-branding campaign targeting young consumers to revitalize its image and boost sales.

[42] In November 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced it was looking into investigating the deal as it would possibly give Roark a monopoly in the sandwich shop industry via the firm's existing ownership of Subway's competitors McAllister's Deli & Jimmy John's.

[78] In the United Kingdom and Ireland, Subway has reduced salt content across its entire range by 33% and has committed to further reductions, in line with government targets.

[88] Beginning in January 2000, Jared Fogle was a national spokesman for the company in the US, giving talks on healthy living and appearing in advertisements.

[90] Subway ended its relationship with Fogle in 2015 after he was charged with possession of child pornography and illicit sexual conduct with a minor.

[94] In 2008, Subway began to offer all its regular one-foot-long (30 cm) submarine sandwiches (excluding the premium and double-meat varieties) for five dollars (equivalent to $7.08 in 2023), in the continental United States and Canada, as a "limited time only" promotion.

[98] On November 1, 2014, Subway discontinued the five-dollar footlong promotion, replacing it with the Simple $6 Menu which included a six-inch select with a drink and a choice of cookies or chips.

Created by their national creative agency MMB, two comedic spots feature Italian-American characters on and around the stoop of a tenement building, one including a cameo by sportscaster Dick Vitale.

Another ad features Food Network's Jeff Mauro, the "Sandwich King", who is also Italian-American,[non-primary source needed][106] discussing the nature and role of the different Italian meats and other ingredients.

[107][108][109][110][111][112] In July 2021, Subway debuted its "Refresh" campaign featuring: Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, Serena Williams, and Megan Rapinoe.

[113] Subway franchisees requested Rapinoe be pulled from the ads following the 2020 Olympics, claiming her testimonial caused sales to dip and harmed the stores' reputation.

[116] In April 2017, Subway released a chicken welfare policy[117] that states that by 2024 or sooner, 100% of its U.S. chicken products will be produced in alignment with Global Animal Partnership (GAP) standards for higher welfare breeds, enhanced living environments (including lighting, litter, and enrichment), increased activity levels and optimized stocking density, and improved slaughter methods.

[119] On April 20, 2017, Hyman and a group of activists traveled to Subway's global headquarters in Connecticut to deliver more than 53,000 signatures from campaign supporters and held a demonstration outside the building after they were denied entry.

[122] Subsequent investigations found that staff failed to adhere to thorough hand washing and the use of plastic gloves during food preparation.

The report also showed the boxes designed to store these sandwiches were 2 feet 10+3⁄4 inches (88.3 cm) in length; shorter than the maximum allowable variance.

[129][130] In 1995, Subway Sandwich Shops, Fred DeLuca, Peter Buck, and Doctor's Associates Inc. were held liable for breach of contract.

An Illinois jury awarded more than $10 million in damages to Nicholas and Victoria Jannotta after finding lease and contract violations.

[134] In October 2010, Subway franchisees in the United Kingdom lost a high court appeal against paying standard VAT on all toasted subs, as required by HM Revenue and Customs.

[135][136][137] In March 2012, Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne announced plans to close the loophole that allows Subway competitors to offer hot food without paying VAT.

This legislation was expected to come into force from October 2012 onward,[138] but on May 28, 2012, the government withdrew plans to charge VAT on originally hot food being allowed to cool naturally.

Consequently, in February 2011, Casey's General Stores Inc. filed a petition in a U.S. District Court in Des Moines, seeking a legal declaration that the word "footlong" does not violate Subway's rights.

Yum Brands (KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and non-Canadian A&W locations), Long John Silver's, and other competitors opposed the applications.

[141] Subway removed azodicarbonamide from its bread after food blogger and activist Vani Hari gathered more than 50,000 signatures in a petition drive.

[148] In August 2015, Vani Hari again petitioned Subway in conjunction with Natural Resources Defense Council, Friends of the Earth, the Center for Food Safety, U.S. Public Interest Research Group to commit to buying meat produced without the routine use of antibiotics and to provide a timeline for doing so.

The company's senior director for global food safety and quality said in a statement that "Our restaurants receive pure tuna, mix it with mayonnaise and serve on a freshly made sandwich to our guests.

"[153] The investigative TV show Inside Edition sent samples of Subway's tuna salad to Applied Food Technologies, a Florida company that carries out DNA testing of seafood.

[155] In an investigation by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)'s consumer affairs television series Marketplace aired in February 2017, chicken from five fast-food restaurants was lab-tested to determine constituents.