Cousins Submarines, better known as Cousins Subs, is an American sub sandwich shop with nearly 100 locations as of December 2024. It was founded in 1972 by cousins Bill Specht and Jim Sheppard and is a regional chain with restaurants in

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

and

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

History

Cousins Subs was founded in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

in 1972 by cousins Bill Specht and James Sheppard, who could not find a suitable sub sandwich option in Milwaukee like they had when they lived in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

Cousins-subs-60th-silver-spring-milwaukee

Specht and Sheppard opened their first restaurant in Milwaukee, which was located at 60th Street and Silver Spring Drive. After opening the shop, they partnered with a local baker to make their own bread, highlighted in the slogan "Better Bread, Better Subs". A large segment of customers during Cousins' early years were former East Coast residents. In 2009, Cousins Subs announced it would put an increased focus on the local side of the business. During the

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.

, Cousins Subs closed over 40 locations to better focus on quality. In 2013, Cousins Subs established The Make It Better Foundation, which focuses in improving the welfare and quality of life in the communities, particularly in health and wellness, hunger, and youth education. Christine Specht-Palmert, daughter of co-founder Bill Specht, took over as CEO in 2015 when her father retired. Cousins Subs announced another rebranding in 2016, which included expanding its footprint throughout the Midwest; remodeling all locations to its Milwaukee Sub Shop to unify the brand; in look and feel, updating its exterior design, logo, packaging and uniform designs; and digitally enhancing the in-store experience for its guests. Along with the remodel, Cousins Subs struck sponsorship agreements with the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers,

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

and

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the College athletics in the United States, athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I ...

. As of October 2019, there were approximately 100+ Cousins Subs locations throughout

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, and

. Cousins Subs continues to develop new locations throughout the Midwest with franchise partners focused on multi-unit development. In August 2018, Cousins announced their expansion into the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

market with 40 new locations opening by 2025. As of July 2021, there were six locations in the Chicago area. All locations in the Chicago area have since closed. Also in 2018, Cousins announced it would re-enter the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...

market of

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, after shuttering stores in 2015. The initial plan is to open about six stores per year, but as of August 2021, none have come to fruition.

References

External links

* {{Fast-food chains of the United States Economy of the Midwestern United States Regional restaurant chains in the United States Fast-food chains of the United States Restaurants established in 1972 Submarine sandwich restaurants 1972 establishments in Wisconsin American companies established in 1972 Companies based in Wisconsin Fast-food franchises

History

See also

References

External links