Subway France

What Subway France does

Subway France is the master franchise organization for the Subway® brand in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, operated by Rex Subs Europe SAS and headquartered at 196-198 avenue de France, Paris. It develops, recruits, and supports a network of roughly 360-400 franchisee-operated quick-service restaurants in France, with the first location opened in Paris in 2001. The franchisor's customers are two-sided: aspiring and multi-unit franchisees who pay entry fees (~€10,000-15,000), an 8% royalty on turnover, and 4.5% advertising contributions; and end consumers served through customizable submarine sandwiches, salads, and wraps with 40+ ingredients, available via dine-in, click & collect, and delivery.

The underlying platform is a franchise management system comprising an extranet, training tools, restaurant layout services, and a recommended contractor network, supported by IPC Europe — an independent purchasing cooperative that negotiates European-scale supply terms. The core restaurant concept is differentiated by the absence of extraction or grease-trap requirements, enabling flexible real estate placement in city centers, malls, retail parks, standalone buildings, and drive-through locations of 70-200m2, with a stated opening timeline of roughly 6 months after lease signature.

Revenue mechanics are percentage-based (royalties + advertising on franchisee turnover) plus one-time franchise entry fees, creating a model where franchisor economics scale directly with network volume. The combined French network turnover is estimated at €200 million annually, serving approximately 22 million customer visits and supporting 3,000+ jobs across the franchise system.

Name

Subway France

Legal name

Rex Subs Europe SAS

Website

https://subway-franchise.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Subway France is the master franchise entity (Rex Subs Europe SAS) operating and supporting approximately 360-400 Subway® quick-service restaurants across France, serving end consumers with customizable sandwiches, salads, and wraps while monetizing through franchise fees, royalties, and advertising contributions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Franchise fees: One-time franchise entry fee charged to new franchisees for the right to use the Subway brand, concept, and support systems.
2. Royalty fees: 8% of turnover excluding tax (CA HT) charged as ongoing franchise royalty for continued use of the brand, training, and operational support.
3. Advertising fees: 4.5% of turnover excluding tax (CA HT) contributed to national and regional marketing and promotional activities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Subway France develops and supports the Subway® franchise network in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, recruiting independent franchisees to operate Subway® sandwich restaurants. The franchisor charges an entry fee, 8% royalty on turnover, and 4.5% advertising contribution, and provides site selection, construction guidance, training, marketing, and ongoing operational support to franchisees who run nearly 400 restaurants serving made-to-order sandwiches, salads, and wraps.

Product overview

Subway France operates a network of nearly 400 fast-food restaurants across France, offering made-to-order submarine sandwiches, salads, and wraps customizable from over 40 ingredients. The company functions primarily as a franchise development and support organization, recruiting and supporting independent franchisees who operate Subway® branded restaurants. The franchise program includes site selection assistance, construction support, initial and ongoing training, marketing support, and the option to develop multiple restaurant locations through the multi-franchise program. The company also maintains a flexible real estate approach, seeking locations of 70-200m2 in city centers, shopping centers, retail parks, and standalone buildings without extraction or grease trap requirements.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Subway® Sandwich Restaurants Fast-food restaurants serving made-to-order submarine sandwiches, salads, and wraps with over 40 customizable ingredients, where customers choose their ingredients to create personalized meals.
• Subway® Franchise Development Program Franchise opportunity program for entrepreneurs including site selection assistance, construction guidance, initial training, and ongoing operational and marketing support to open a Subway® restaurant. Entry fee of 10,000 EUR excluding tax and minimum personal investment of 80,000 EUR.
• Subway® Multi-Franchise Program Expansion program for existing successful franchisors to develop multiple Subway® restaurant locations, allowing operators to grow their portfolio and maximize profitability within assigned territories.
• Subway® Franchise Support Services Comprehensive ongoing franchise support including restaurant plans from a dedicated design team, construction support with recommended contractors, purchasing through the IPC Europe buying association, and 10-year franchise contracts with continued brand, training, and operational support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 400 Subway restaurants operating in France
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• IPC EuropecoreOthersIPC Europe is an independent purchasing company and non-profit buying association supported by franchise partners. It negotiates purchasing conditions on a European basis and ensures uniform supply of goods, providing franchisees with appropriate procurement channels at the best prices. This is a critical supply chain partnership that directly affects franchisee profitability.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• McDonald's France: Largest QSR franchise network in France with ~1,500 restaurants operated by independent franchisees. Direct competitor to Subway France for share of stomach in the French quick-service segment, with the same franchise-fee business model and dine-in/takeaway/delivery distribution channels.
• KFC France: Chicken-focused QSR franchise with a meaningful French footprint operated via master-franchise structure. Comparable to Subway France in being a global brand locally franchised, with similar unit economics (royalties, ad fund) and similar reliance on recruiting multi-unit operators to drive network growth.
• Five Guys France: U.S. burger franchise expanding in France via franchise and corporate stores. Comparable to Subway France as an internationally branded QSR concept scaling in France through a mix of franchise and company-operated locations, competing for the same mid-priced lunch-and-dinner occasion.
• Burger King France: Major QSR franchise operator in France (relaunched in 2013 via master franchise with Groupe Bertrand) operating several hundred restaurants under a similar royalty + ad-fee model. Directly competes with Subway France for breakfast and lunch occasions and shares the franchise-recruitment-driven growth playbook.
• Domino's Pizza France: Master-franchised QSR chain in France (operated by Domino's Pizza France SAS) with a heavy delivery-led distribution model. Comparable to Subway France in master-franchise governance, royalty-based revenue model, and reliance on recruiting and supporting independent franchisees across French regions.

Regional players

• Quick (Burger King France): Historic Belgian-origin QSR chain now part of Groupe Bertrand alongside Burger King France. Comparable to Subway France as a French-market QSR franchise concept with comparable dine-in and drive-through formats and similar franchise-recruitment economics.
• Buffalo Grill: France's largest casual-dining steakhouse chain, historically franchise-heavy. Comparable to Subway France in being a France-centric franchise-driven restaurant group with similar operating leverage from franchise royalties, though positioned in casual dining rather than QSR.
• Paul (Groupe Holder): Iconic French bakery-café chain with franchised and corporate stores across France and internationally. Comparable to Subway France as a French-rooted franchise QSR/café concept competing for the same morning and lunch traffic, with a similarly broad menu of customizable items.

Emerging players

• Bagelstein: French bagel-focused QSR franchise concept with a growing footprint across France. Comparable to Subway France in competing for the customizable-sandwich occasion and operating via a franchise model with similar target customer (lunch-time urban professionals and students).

Broad incumbents

• Starbucks France: Global coffee-and-light-food chain with a significant French presence operated through licensed stores. Comparable to Subway France as an internationally branded, locally franchised/licensed food-and-beverage concept with similar real-estate flexibility and brand-driven recruitment approach, though in a different daypart and category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/subwayfrance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Subway France