Port of Subs Plans for National Expansion Following Acquisition by Area 15 Ventures
Ā
UpdatedĀ
From left: Ben Litalien, chief development officer of Port of Subs; Healey Mendicino, president of Port of Subs; John Larsen, Port of Subs founder; Lisa Moore, Larsen’s daughter and chief financial officer of Port of Subs; Dave Liniger, chairman of Area 15 Ventures; Shawn Mefford, Larsen’s daughter and chief operating officer of Port of Subs; and Adam Contos, CEO of Port of Subs and Area 15 Ventures partner.
Port of Subs founder John Larsen wanted to ensure the sandwich chain was left in good hands when he retired. āI think heād been threatening that for about 15 years,ā newly named President Healey Mendicino said of Larsenās retirement.
Private equity firm Area 15 Ventures recently acquired Port of Subs, the 50-year-old franchisor with 132 stores open in seven western U.S. states.
āItās Johnās baby, so he wanted to make sure that it went into the hands of capable people that would carry on the legacy and the foundation that he put forward,ā Mendicino said. āWhen we got introduced to Area 15, they were a very, very attractive option for us to move forward with.ā
āIt allows for multiple regions to be sold and multiple developers to come out of the ground at the same time, in a scalable wayā Mendicino said. āThat is much more difficult with single-unit growth.ā
She also emphasized the importance of internal communication during a major change such as this and said the Port of Subs team has been vocal with its franchisees and team members about the acquisition and its plans for growth. There were times when it felt like they were making up the playbook as they went along, she said.
āWe were first a little bit hesitant to throw everything out there right away,ā Mendicino said. āThatās probably our biggest lesson, that more communication ⦠has been a pivotal foundation for us.ā
Mendicino and the Port of Subs team are looking forward to the brand becoming a household name with Area 15ās backing.
āWe have an absolutely amazing product, our high-quality, amazing sandwiches,ā she said. āOur food speaks for itself.ā
The investment required to open a Port of Subs store ranges from $239,900 to $443,000.Ā The brand had $64.6 million in systemwide salesĀ in 2021 across its 129 stores.
Other small-to-mid-sized national sandwich chains includeĀ Erbert and Gerbert’s, a Wisconsin-based franchise that had sales of more than $33 million across its 72 stores in 2021. There’s alsoĀ Which Wich, which reported $110 million in sales in 2021. The Dallas-based brand had 271 units at the end of 2021.