Subway for sale: How to avoid the fate of Blockbuster

In the business world, change is inevitable. Companies that fail to adapt and innovate risk becoming irrelevant and eventually fail. This is what happened to Blockbuster, the once-mighty video rental chain that failed to pivot in response to the rise of streaming services like Netflix.

Today, another iconic brand faces a similar challenge: Subway, one of the world’s largest fast-food chains. Subway announced it is exploring a possible sale of the sandwich company and has been losing market share in recent years to fast-growing rivals like Panera and Firehouse Subs. But by embracing Business Agility, Subway may be able to avoid the fate of Blockbuster.

Firehouse Subs

Panera Bread

Business Agility is the ability of an organisation to quickly and effectively respond to changes in the market, competitive landscape, and customer demands. It involves being flexible, adaptable, and able to move rapidly to capitalise on new opportunities or respond to emerging trends. If you want to find out more about Business Agility, please read our blog here: What is Business Agility transformation?

For Subway, embracing Business Agility will require several fundamental changes:

1. Renewed focus on the customer. Listen to thecustomers and respond to their changing preferences around healthy eating, sustainability, and convenience. This means introducing new menu items that reflect these preferences and experimenting with new store formats and digital ordering options.
2. Break down silos and promote cross-functional collaboration. The company must empower its employees to make decisions quickly and experiment with new ideas. This requires a culture of continuous improvement and iteration, where failure is seen as an opportunity to learn and improve.
3. Embrace technology and innovation. This includes investing in digital ordering platforms, leveraging data to understand customer behaviour, and experimenting with new marketing techniques. By embracing innovation, Subway can stay ahead of the curve and continue to meet the changing needs of its customers.
4. Take risks. This means being willing to try new things, even if they don’t always work out. It also means letting go of old ideas and embracing new ones.

For Subway, Business Agility offers a great opportunity for the sandwich giant to avoid the fate of Blockbuster. It can stay ahead of the curve and continue to meet the changing needs of its customers. It can experiment with new ideas, learn from failure and re-invent itself.

These are just some of the changes Subway could make to its organisation to increase market share and remain competitive. Every organisation is unique and it’s worth considering what changes your own business can embrace.

If you need help finding the untapped potential in your organisation, reach out to us at EPiC and we can provide a free consultation* with one of our specialists. A short conversation is all that’s needed to help find solutions to your challenges in market.