Founded in 1965, Subway has become one of the world’s largest restaurant chains, operating in more than 100 countries and around 37,000 restaurants globally. Since entering the Canadian market in 1986, Subway Canada has become one of country’s most recognizable quick-service restaurant brands with about 2850 locations, known for its freshly made, customizable sandwiches, wraps, and salads. Zaid Kharouba, Head of Development, Subway Canada, reports that plans call for over 45 new restaurants in 2026, alongside over 20 relocations as part of the company’s broader market optimization strategy. “We have openings scheduled across every single province in 2026, spanning rural communities, urban centres and in non-traditional venues,” he explained. “Our scope is intentionally broad. One of Subway’s key advantages is the brand’s real estate flexibility. Our operational and base-building requirements—such as power, venting, HVAC, and store size—are landlord-friendly, allowing us to be nimble across a wide range of trade areas, geographies and formats.” The franchise chain seeks locations in urban retail corridors, open centres, mixed-transit hubs, universities, hospitals and mixed-use projects. The 800 to 1200 square foot range remains its core footprint though flexible in high-demand markets and opportunities. Strong street visibility, signage opportunities and complementary co-tenants are required. Convenient pedestrian and vehicle access is necessary and the chain continues to expand its drive-thru model across Canada, which introduces more flexible size requirements. All new restaurants and relocations will feature Subway’s latest design package, Fresh Forward 2.0. At this time Kate Camezuli and her team at CBRE Ltd are handling the site selection in Ontario and Manon Larose and Michelle Marcotte-Blart at Oberfeld Snowcap are handling the real estate search in Quebec.
CBRE Ltd., 145 King St West, Suite 1100, Toronto, Ontario M5H 1J8 (Kate Camezuli – 416/815-2380 kate.camenzuli@cbre.com)
Oberfeld Snowcap, 8300 Decarie Blvd., Suite 600, Montreal, Quebec H4P 2P5 (Manon Larose – 438/990-8968 manonl@oberfeldsnowcap.com) & (Michelle Marcotte-Blart – 514/972-6163 michelle@oberfeldsnowcap.com)
Subway Subs of Canada, 185 The West Mall, Suite 701, Etobicoke, Ontario M9C 1B8 (www.subway.com)