Tubby's facts for kids
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| Private | |
| Industry | Fast food |
| Founded | St. Clair Shores, Michigan (1968) |
| Founder | Richard Paganes |
| Headquarters | , |
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Number of locations
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60+ (2023) |
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Area served
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Michigan (primarily metropolitan Detroit) |
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Key people
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Robert Paganes (President & CEO), Bill Kiryakoza (Executive VP) |
| Products | Submarine sandwiches, salads, fries, soups, cupcakes (Just Baked) |
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Number of employees
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70 |
Tubby's is a popular American restaurant chain that sells franchises. It started in 1968 in St. Clair Shores, Michigan. Today, its main office is in Clinton Township, Michigan, which is a suburb of Detroit.
Tubby's has more than 60 locations across Michigan, mostly around the Detroit area. They are famous for their grilled submarine sandwiches, but they also offer salads, chips, soft drinks, french fries, and soup. In 2015, Tubby's also started selling cupcakes from a local brand called Just Baked.
Contents
The Story of Tubby's
Tubby's was started in 1968 by Richard Paganes in St. Clair Shores, Michigan. Richard was 21 years old and had worked at another sub shop before. He decided to open his own place.
He found the perfect spot for his first Tubby's when he had a flat tire in front of a building for rent. Soon after, the first Tubby's opened. It offered 25 different kinds of sandwiches, and most of them were grilled.
Richard quickly opened three more stores nearby. His brother, Robert, joined him to help with the growing business. By 1977, Tubby's had 10 locations and became an official company called Tubby's Sub Shops, Inc.
The first Tubby's that was a franchise (meaning someone else owned and ran it using the Tubby's name) opened in Madison Heights, Michigan. Some locations also started offering places to sit and eat, not just take-out. The store in Westland, Michigan was the first to have a drive-through window.
By 1986, Tubby's had 50 locations. The company even became public, meaning people could buy shares of the company. Tubby's later bought another local restaurant called Ricky's Dairy Bar and Luxury Grill.
Growing in the 1990s and 2000s
In 1994, Tubby's tried a new idea called Tubby's Café Express. These smaller restaurants were inside Sears department stores. They also opened locations at universities like Wayne State University and Ohio State University. One Tubby's even opened inside a hospital in Detroit.
Later in 1994, Richard Paganes returned as the CEO, and the Café Express idea was stopped. Tubby's also opened stores in Florida and Ohio. They even started putting locations inside gas stations.
In 1997, Tubby's opened its first store outside the United States in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. A year later, they opened stores in Indiana and Missouri.
After a plan to merge with another company didn't work out, Tubby's became a private company again in 1999. That same year, they expanded into Arizona. However, all the locations outside Michigan eventually closed. Tubby's decided to focus more on the Detroit area to compete with big national chains like Quiznos and Subway.
In 2001, the 100th Tubby's store opened in Macomb Township, Michigan. This was also the first Tubby's to serve pizza. By 2019, Tubby's had about 55 locations in the Detroit area.
Modernizing in the 2010s and 2020s
In the 2010s, Tubby's started to update its stores and business plans. Robert Paganes continued to lead the company. Bill Kiryakoza joined as an Executive Vice President in 2010.
In 2014, Kiryakoza and Paganes became co-owners of Tubby's. They announced plans to update the stores, change the branding, and add new items to the menu.
In 2015, Tubby's bought the Just Baked brand. Just Baked is a bakery from Michigan known for its gourmet cupcakes. Tubby's began selling these cupcakes in their stores. This helped Tubby's offer more choices and attract more customers.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Tubby's used its drive-throughs and mobile ordering options. This helped them stay open and serve customers safely. Their sales grew by almost 11% from 2020 to 2021.
In 2022, Tubby's announced plans to grow beyond the Detroit area. They planned to open stores in other Michigan cities like Ann Arbor, Lansing, Flint, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo. As of 2023, Tubby's has over 60 locations across Michigan. They continue to be known for their grilled submarine sandwiches and gourmet cupcakes.
See also
