Subway Plans 1,200 New North American Locations in 2012

MILFORD, Conn. -- The Subway restaurant chain is charting an aggressive growth plan for 2012, with some estimates pegging its number of new locations in North America at 1,200 this year.

To hit its target number, Subway representatives will be on hand at the ICSC RECon convention May 21 through May 23 in Las Vegas. The quick-service restaurant (QSR) chain has already reached 25,000 U.S. locations and restaurants open in 100 countries.

"To continue to provide career opportunities to entrepreneurs and offer our world-famous submarine sandwiches, which include a wide range of healthier meal options, to an ever-increasing consumer base, more than 100 Subway developers, field staff and leasing specialists from all across North America will be attending the event," said Chris Kan, training and business promotion specialist for Subway Real Estate LLC. "We will be looking for sites and ready to make deals."

Subway continues to look for new opportunities in traditional shopping centers, malls and freestanding locations, as well as non-traditional venues such as hospitals, colleges, sports arenas and airports.

Since January, the QSR operator has opened nearly 900 new locations in 58 countries, 42 U.S. states and seven Canadian provinces, which equates to more than one million square feet of prime commercial retail space. In total, Subway franchisees lease more than 43 million square feet of property worldwide.