36 FORTUNE APRIL 2020 THE BRIEF — VENTUREto come up with a medical excuse on
why I missed gym so much, so I said
I had a bad back.
There were 12 people working in
the store in the off-season, and we
had worked together for years, so
they were happy for me. When you’re
17, you feel invincible, and most
times you are because you think that
way. Paperwork and taxes were a
challenge, but I learned by doing.
People came from all over the
country to vacation at the beach,
and at the end of the summer, they
would order our subs to take home
with them. In 1986 we opened a sec-
ond store in town and changed our
name from Mike’s to Jersey Mike’s,
so that people would know where
the product was from. People were
asking us to franchise, so in 1987 we
started doing that.We got to 35 stores
when the recession hit in- No one would lend
money in the Northeast,
which really hurt us. Ev-
erything we had made was
spent on growth, advertis-
ing, and more people, and
we overspent. We were
negative a million and
a half dollars and were
counseled to declare bank-
ruptcy, but I said no way.
I had to lay off all
six people in the office,
including my brother. It’s
amazing how many bills
you can pay when you
have no payroll.
It was tough times. I was
married with three young
children. I owed money
to equipment companies,
construction companies.
I’d float one bill and pay
another to keep from going
into collection.
I persevered by show-
ing up morning to night,
seven days a week. I liqui-
dated my 401(k), sold the
Mercedes-Benz and any
extra things we had, bring-
ing it down to one used car.
I went out and did the
store visits myself for
more than a year, then
gradually started hiring
people back.
In recessions, we do bet-
ter because people give up
the tablecloth restaurants
for our shops, so the busi-
ness was still great. I got
lucky breaks, and things
turned around. I learned
to slow down and not
overspend. By 1998 we hit
100 stores.
In the beginning, I went
charging up the hill. Now
I look around the hill and
plan first before expanding.
When we meet new
people who want to buy
a franchise, I want to
see if they understand
our culture. We’re big on
community involvement,
which I learned from the
town merchants in Point
Pleasant when I was 14.
All our marketing is
local. In March we do a
Day of Giving, when the
owners give all their sales
to a local charity. Last year
we raised $7.5 million for
good causes. Cause-related
marketing benefits chari-
ties and makes you a part
of the community.
We pay people higher
than minimum wage. It’s
up to the owners, but we
recommend a percentage
for payroll out of the gross.
In California, for example,
minimum wage is $12 an
hour, but with 10 to 12
people in each store, those
who work the slicer can
make $20 to $22 an hour.
In ’08 and ’09 a reces-
sion happened again, but
there was still some money
to be lent. Everyone was
hit, but our company grew
through it because we had
enough stores open and
had planned better for
capital and growth.
We’re in 47 states,
Canada, and Australia
and have about 1,700
stores now. In 2019 we did
$1.4 billion in sales. It’s
still owned just by me.
What I love about being
CEO is making a dif-
ference in people’s lives.
Mostly I’m proudest of
having coached all my kids’
sports teams. No matter
how busy I was, I made
it back for their practices.
And they all got their first
job at age 14.PETER CANCRO’S BEST ADVICERise up together. With each customer
transaction, don’t just say, “How are you?
This is how much you owe.” Make human
contact. Share something about yourself
with your customer. If someone’s down,
try to help turn that around.Cancro (left)
with a customer
outside the
original Mike’s
location in Point
Pleasant, N.J.,
circ a 197 7.COURTESY OF JERSEY MIKE'SHOW.W.0420.XMIT.indd 36 FINAL 3/9/20 1:06 PM