Subway: How a clueless poor kid built a billion dollar sandwich empire

Hey Rebel Solopreneurs

Ever felt like everyone's telling you your digital product idea won't work?

Maybe you're getting those eye-rolls when you talk about your online course dreams, or hearing "the market is too saturated" for the millionth time.

Well, grab your favorite drink, because I've got a story that'll make you smile.

It's about Fred DeLuca, a 17-year-old kid who turned a borrowed $1,000 into a global empire - while people kept telling him he was doing it all wrong!

Ready to discover how a teenager with zero business experience ignored the naysayers and built a billion-dollar empire?

And more importantly, how you can apply his "prove them wrong" strategy to your digital product business?

Let's dive in!

1: 🎓 The Resourceful Kid: when you start hustling early

Let's jump back to Brooklyn, 1958.

Picture a 10-year-old Fred DeLuca, walking around his housing project, picking up empty bottles.

Each bottle = 2 cents. Not much, but hey, it was a start!

His family wasn't exactly rolling in money.

Dad never went to high school, mom finished high school but that was it.

They moved around a lot - from Brooklyn to New York, and finally to Bridgeport, Connecticut.

(Reminds you of starting with zero email subscribers, doesn't it?)

2: 💭 The Big Dream: when life says no, but you're not listening

By 17, Fred had a clear dream: become a doctor.

But with his hardware store job paying just $1.25 per hour (minimum wage back then), that dream seemed about as likely as winning the lottery while being struck by lightning... twice.

But here's where Fred's story gets interesting...

3: 🤝 The Lucky Break: sometimes mentors show up in surprising packages

Picture this: It's summer 1965.

Fred's family is visiting their friend Pete Buck, a nuclear physicist.

Fred looks at Pete's nice house, two-car garage, and thinks, "Hey, maybe this rich guy can help me pay for college!"

Instead of the expected stack of cash, Pete throws him a curveball: "Why don't you open a submarine sandwich shop?"

Fred probably thought Pete was joking.

But Pete laid it out simply: "You rent a little store, build a counter, buy some food, open for business, and customers give you money for sandwiches. Simple!"

(Like when someone suggests you should create digital products, and you think they're crazy!)

4: 🎯 The Ambitious Plan: when you dream so big people think you're nuts

Here's where it gets wild.

Instead of just planning one store, Fred and Pete set a goal: 32 stores in 10 years.

The number 32 wasn't random at all.

They knew about another sandwich shop in Upstate New York called Mike's Submarine Sandwiches.

Mike had started from nothing 10 years earlier and built up a chain of thirty-two stores.

Pete even had an article showing exactly how Mike had done it, and they used that as their blueprint.

Fred says, "It was an extremely serious goal in that it never changed. We never had a discussion about changing the goal. We always talked about the goal; we always kept it in mind. We thought it was achievable because the other guy had done it."

Their menu planning was genius too - they combined the best items from two successful shops they loved: Mike's Sandwiches and Amato's (Pete's childhood favorite from Maine, started by Italian immigrant Giovanni Amato in 1902).

Amato's made sandwiches one way, Mike's made them differently, but both made long sandwiches.

So they decided to create their own unique long sandwich combining ideas from these two successful shops.

They picked just five sandwiches for their menu (all foot-long) and added Coke. That's it!

5: 🏗️ The Scrappy Start: when you bootstrap like there's no tomorrow

Fred's start-up story is pure gold for bootstrappers:

• Borrowed his dad's car to look for a store

• Found a spot near his hardware store job

• Had no idea what a lease was (saved $25 by skipping it!)

• Built the counter himself

• Bought used household refrigerators for $10 through newspaper ads

• Almost got shut down because he didn't know he needed building permits

• Drew a rough sketch on the spot when the city asked for plans

6: 📈 The Opening Rush: when early success tricks you

August 28, 1965: Opening day!

Fred had an English exam that morning (yep, still in school!).

He quickly taught a friend how to make sandwiches and rushed off to his test.

When he came back? Line out the door!

They sold 300 sandwiches and were sold out by 6 PM.

Fred and Pete thought they'd hit the jackpot. Spoiler alert: They hadn't.

7: 📉 The Reality Check: when everything seems to be falling apart

Sales dropped faster than a hot potato.

Pete (being the scientist) would come in every Monday and chart their declining sales.

Not exactly motivating!

By winter 1966, they couldn't even pay their employee's wages.

Picture Fred and Pete sitting in Fred's mom's kitchen (their "world headquarters"), staring at the numbers.

Pete wrote down: "LTDATK" - Lock The Door And Throw Away The Key.

8: 🚀 The Bold Move: when conventional wisdom says quit, but you say "nah"

Fred now realizes his biggest mistake with the first store was its crummy location.

It was tucked away in a back corner of a shopping center, barely visible to anyone passing by.

He hadn't thought about it from the customer's perspective - who wants to walk to a hidden sandwich shop?

That fateful night, Fred and Pete spent over an hour brainstorming options in mom's kitchen.

They considered advertising more, but they'd already tried that and it hadn't worked.

Then came the wild idea: What if, instead of moving the first store (which would cost a fortune), they just opened a second one?

This way, they could test a new location without losing their current spot.

It was a completely unconventional move - most people don't think about opening a second location when their first one is struggling!

But the logic was simple: If the first location stinks, try a better one, and they could always close the first store later if needed.

Fred found a second small store with a more visible street entrance, built it out, and opened in May 1966.

The second store was a complete contrast to the first - it had a visible street entrance on a busy road in Bridgeport.

Fred had learned an important lesson: put yourself in your customers' shoes and think about what they want - a highly visible storefront that looks clean and safe.

And guess what? After opening the second store with better visibility, sales at the first store actually started improving too!

This success gave them the confidence to open their third store in September 1966.

(Like having a backup digital product ready when your first one isn't selling!)

9: 🔍 The Detective Work: when you learn from your customers

One day, Fred's car broke down (blessing in disguise!).

A young guy gave him a ride, and passing one of Fred's stores, the kid bragged about getting free sodas there.

Turned out, while employees made sandwiches with their backs turned, customers were sneaking sodas out to their cars!

Fred quickly fixed this problem.

(Just like when you discover why your course isn't selling through a random customer conversation!)

10: 💡 The Innovation: when breaking rules creates magic

Fred revolutionized fast food by:

• Making sandwiches in front of customers (unheard of back then!)

• Letting customers choose their ingredients

• Designing custom counters for this "crazy" idea

• Creating special bread-baking machines

• Making "Eat Fresh" more than just a slogan

11: 🤝 The Relationship Builder: when being "inefficient" pays off

Here's something fascinating about how Fred handled his suppliers when money was tight.

Fred and his mom would drive around every Friday to visit their four main suppliers - the people who provided their meat, bread, vegetables, and paper supplies.

Not to pick up supplies - just to chat and deliver whatever partial payment they could make that week.

During these visits, they'd spend 5-10 minutes having a friendly conversation.

"How's business?" the vendors would ask, and they'd chat a bit.

The vendors knew Fred and his mom personally because of these weekly visits.

Even though their payment was usually less than what they owed (their balances kept building up), the suppliers kept supporting them.

Why? Because these personal visits built trust.

Fred explains: "If we didn't drive around to deliver checks, which is a totally inefficient thing to do, I am positive that we would not have built the kind of relationship that allowed them to be as comfortable with us."

The suppliers knew that even if they didn't get all their money right away, they'd get it eventually because Fred and his mom always showed up, always communicated, and always paid something.

These relationships literally saved their business during tough times, especially those hard winter months when sales were down.

(Like spending time engaging with your newsletter subscribers instead of just selling!)

It's a powerful reminder that sometimes the most "inefficient" way of doing business can be the most effective.

12: 📚 The College Student: burning the midnight oil

While running his growing business, Fred:

• Got up at 4 AM to buy vegetables in New York

• Went to college classes

• Worked during lunch breaks

• Managed stores until late night

• Finally graduated in 1971 with a psychology degree

13: 🌱 The Franchise Experiment: when opportunity knocks twice

After 8 years, they were behind on their 32-store goal.

Fred tried franchising, starting with his friend Brian.

The offer? Get a store near his house, cheap financing, and Fred would buy it back if it didn't work out.

Brian said no! He was scared to leave his "stable" job.

Four months later, Brian's company went bankrupt.

Guess who called Fred?

Brian became their first successful franchisee and never worked a 9-5 again!

14: 🎯 The New Goal: when people think you've lost your mind

By 1982, they had 200 stores.

Fred went into seclusion, did some research, and came back with a new goal: 5,000 stores by 1994.

His team thought he was crazy.

But Fred kept it simple: "We know how to make one store work, now we just need to do it more times."

🎉 The Happy Ending

That scrappy 17-year-old kid built:

• 45,000+ locations worldwide

• Presence in 112 countries

• Revenues exceeding $9.5 billion

• The world's largest submarine sandwich chain

• A revolution in how fast food is made and served

Fred says he's not even sure he could do it again - it was about taking one step at a time and not letting the naysayers stop him.

🌟 Your Turn!

Think about it - Fred started with zero business experience and borrowed money.

You've already got your skills, your newsletter, and your growing audience.

What's your equivalent of "making sandwiches in front of customers" that'll shake up your industry?

The next time someone tells you your digital product ideas are "too different" or "won't work," remember Fred.

Remember the kid buying used refrigerators through newspaper ads.

Remember the college student getting up at 4 AM to buy vegetables.

Remember the guy who kept opening stores even when the first one was failing.

Sometimes the best businesses come from ignoring the skeptics and trusting your gut.

And hey, if a 17-year-old with no business experience can build a global empire with $1,000, imagine what you could do with your expertise and today's digital tools!

Keep Zooming 🚀🍧

Yours "Believing in your crazy dreams" Vijay Peduru