A Subway Near You May Be Closing Soon

Sandwich lovers may soon have to drive a few more miles more for their footlongs. Bloomberg reports that Subway Restaurants will be shuttering 500 or so of its US stores, leaving about 25,400 open. (No specifics yet on which locations are closing.) This latest round of closures follows shutdowns in 2016 and in 2017, with about 800 last year. "We focused in the past on restaurant count. We're focused now on strengthening market share," says Subway CEO Suzanne Greco, who adds she's in for the long haul: "Subway is in my blood."

CNNMoney notes Subway boasts more stores worldwide—44,000 and counting—than any other fast-food giant, but it's facing fierce competition from more modern chains (CNBC cites Panera and Chipotle, among others), and even from gas stations and supermarkets that offer bites to grab on the go. To help boost sales, it's remodeling some locations, trying out new menu items, and putting a customer loyalty program in place. Not that the company is reducing store count everywhere: It says it will be expanding internationally, opening up more than 1,000 locations in Germany, the UK, India, Mexico, China, and South Korea. (More Subway stories.)