Subway Looks Ahead With A New Marketing Strategy, Full Of Nostalgia

In a bid to clean up its image, Subway has hired advertising agency BBDO to create a new campaign that harkens back to the chain's founding, back in 1965. The new strategy is part of an effort for the company to prove that it has heard consumer complaints about its use of artificial ingredients — which the company has since promised to discontinue.

Moreover, Subway is understandably eager to shed its association with Jared Fogle, the chain's once-prominent spokesman who was charged earlier this year with viewing child pornography as well as engaging in paid sexual activity with minors. In November, Fogle was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment as part of a plea deal, which will also require him to register as a sex offender.

In its new approach, Subway will hire fewer celebrities to endorse its products and focus less on discounts, like the once-ubiquitous "Five-Dollar Footlongs." Moving forward, Subway plans to hone in on its renewed commitment to the concept of fresh food.

"'Fresh' as a subject has really changed from when we introduced it 15 years ago when it was about making the sandwiches fresh and having fresh produce," said Subway's chief advertising officer, Chris Carroll, told AdAge. "It's not just an advertising change to the brand. This is an entire company effort, from products to the way we operate the restaurants."

"Founded on fresh," the company's latest tagline, will be the focus on its advertising for the next two months. In the spring, Subway will introduce a rotisserie chicken sandwich that is antibiotic-free.