Penn Station East Coast Subs Announces Record Year

Penn Station East Coast Subs, the fast-casual restaurant known for its grilled, made-to-order sub sandwiches, hand-squeezed lemonade and fresh-cut fries, grew in both sales and units in 2021.

Overall systemwide sales increased by more than 21 percent in 2021. Penn Station’s comparative same store sales also remained strong, increasing by 20 percent in 2021, after having increased by almost 5 percent in 2020.

“2021 brought new challenges to the restaurant industry with an extremely difficult labor market and unprecedented supply chain issues,” said Craig Dunaway, president of Penn Station. “Restaurants that were able to pivot and stay ahead of these challenges had a huge opportunity for growth. We are very proud of our franchisees and general managers for working so hard and leading from the top to help the brand succeed in 2021.”

Additionally, Penn Station onboarded Ammy Harrison as VP of Development and Strategy and overhauled its development department in 2021 to support future growth.

“As a brand, we decided the time is right to further expand our brand into new markets and to increase our unit count in more mature markets as well. We are very excited about the progress we have made in just a few short months and our franchisees are excited about the growth opportunities and growing their business to the next level,” Dunaway said.

Deals have already been signed in Knoxville and Nashville, Tennessee; Canton, Cleveland, Columbus and Dayton, Ohio; northern Kentucky; Charlotte and Winston-Salem, North Carolina; and St. Louis, Missouri.

Penn Station also continued its support of local Down syndrome organizations and the National Down Syndrome Adoption Network (NDSAN) this year. Penn Station, Inc. donated $60,000 to NDSAN, and the restaurants hosted a roundup campaign in March, raising $146,000 for organizations across the country.

With many attractive development territories available for multi-unit growth, there has never been a better time to become a Penn Station franchisee.