There could be big changes at Jersey Mike’s in 2025

Fans are not happy.

Who knew the Original Italian and Chipotle Pastrami were worth the big bucks? Billions of dollars, to be exact. This week, Peter Cancro, the man behind the roast beef and pepperoni-filled Cancro Special and founder and CEO of Jersey Mike’s Subs, agreed to sell a majority stake in his company to Blackstone Inc.

Blackstone, an investment management company valued at about $1 trillion that includes Hilton Worldwide and Tropical Smoothie Cafe, among many others, spent heavily on the deal. According to the Wall Street Journal, the chain will be taken over for around $8 billion.

Although the sale won’t be finalized until early 2025, fans of the sandwich giant, which has nearly 3,000 locations in the U.S., are already worried that the new ownership could have negative consequences for the brand.

What does selling Jersey Mike mean for customers?

“Jersey Mikes has been acquired by Blackstone,” wrote Threads user @attorneyryan. “Be prepared for prices to rise, portions to shrink and quality to decline. It will be sold in parts within 5 years. Private equity destroys everything it touches.”

Redditors seemed to agree. “One person works the entire restaurant. Deli meat is now delivered pre-cut by Sysco. Prices will rise. Business will slow down and then 50% of stores will close,” one user predicted.

“Great. This recently happened to Firehouse Subs too. I can’t even go there anymore. They’ve reduced the portion size, allowed rewards points to expire after 9 months, and eliminated your annual free birthday sandwich. You can count on these things now at Jersey Mike sad to see,” another Reddit user wrote.

But not everyone is in turmoil. “I grew up eating Jersey Mike’s. The company was founded in Manasquan, New Jersey and I grew up on the Jersey Shore. The franchise is great. What’s more impressive, however, is how well Blackstone executes on content and capital. No other investment firm has done this,” wrote X user (formerly Twitter) @VijarKohli.

Kohli shared a video of Blackstone CEO and Chairman Stephen Schwarzman eating a Jersey Mike’s Sub. When asked how he prepared it, Schwarzman replies, “It’s Mike’s way, and if it’s Mike’s way, it’s Steve’s way.” Later in the video, he says that he expects Blackstone “to do a great job and Peter “It will help Cancro and its great team grow the business.”

It’s important to note that the deal does not make Blackstone the sole owner of Jersey Mike’s. Cancro will continue to hold a minority stake. However, we know that this won’t stop fans from speculating about the chain’s future – similar to the backlash after Campbell’s announced its plans to take over Rao’s Homemade.

So what does the future hold for Jersey Mike’s? We can’t be sure, but it’s clear that location expansion, which will create jobs for future franchisees, is a big priority. But when it comes to the quality of the product, let’s just hope we can continue to get hearty portions of well-made subs for years to come (Mike’s Way, of course).