MANASQUAN, N.J. — Private equity giant Blackstone said it's acquiring popular sub sandwich chain Jersey Mike's.
Blackstone announced Tuesday morning that Jersey Mike's had agreed to selling a majority stake of its business, which sources cited by CNN said was valued at around $8 billion. Jersey Mike's founder and CEO Peter Cancro will continue to lead the business and maintain a "significant equity stake," Blackstone said.
The cash infusion will help the sub chain expand, Blackstone said in a release. Jersey Mike's has more than 2,800 locations nationwide, with 54 stores in Colorado including 10 restaurants in the Denver metro area.
“Jersey Mike’s has grown for more than half a century by maintaining an unrelenting focus on quality (and delicious sandwiches) – consistently building on its loyal customer base as it has scaled nationwide," Peter Wallace, a senior managing director at Blackstone, said.
Cancro began working at the original restaurant, which was originally called Mike's Subs, in Point Pleasant, New Jersey as a teenager in the early 1970s. He acquired the subs shop in 1975 the age of 17, according to the company's website. After a name change, Cancro began franchising the Jersey Mike's brand in 1987.
"We believe we are still in the early innings of Jersey Mike's growth story and that Blackstone is the right partner to help us reach even greater heights," Cancro said in a statement announcing the billon-dollar deal.
The deal between Jersey Mike's and Blackstone is expected to be finalized in early 2025.
Jersey Mike's ads feature "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" actor Danny DeVito.
