Subway’s EMEA Blueprint links ordering, kitchens and pickup

Subway’s Blueprint becomes the design standard for every new restaurant and remodel in Europe, the Middle East and Africa from January 1, 2027. The company announced the format October 8, following the first openings in the UK and Netherlands in summer 2026. The announcement sets no deadline for converting all existing stores.

Guests can order with a sandwich maker at the counter, use a self-service kiosk, or order through Subway’s app and delivery channels. An order-ready screen signals completed meals, with a marked collection point for pickup.

The connection continues into food preparation. In its Blueprint Q&A, Subway describes a system linking kiosks, digital menu boards and kitchen screens, giving staff clear information as they make customers’ orders. That places the kitchen display between the customer’s menu choices and the finished meal, making preparation part of the same digital workflow.

Subway-published franchisee accounts describe how that works in early restaurants. Jaspal Singh in Amsterdam says his kiosks, kitchen display system and collection screen are fully connected, helping during the restaurant’s busiest periods.

Didar Singh in Walton-on-Thames, UK, says kiosks give customers time to explore and customize without feeling rushed. He reports higher average transaction value since introducing Blueprint and says that restaurant leads his four-store group. These are individual operators’ experiences published by the brand.

The program includes a new breakfast and coffee offer. Grab & Go offers meals prepared in the restaurant for immediate collection at fast-moving sites such as transport hubs. After Dark, being piloted in the Netherlands, changes the menu, lighting, music and staff clothing from 6 p.m. Subway says these formats will expand according to site and local demand.

A longer digital design effort#

When Subway announced Fresh Forward 2.0 in November 2024, it said self-service kiosks, order-ready screens and kitchen display systems were already being tested in markets worldwide. The tests covered three stages of a meal: ordering it, preparing it and telling the customer it was ready.

Fresh Forward 2.0 also combined physical changes with support for digital sales: warmer wood tones, updated lighting, wall graphics and local signage. Subway presented it as the next version of Fresh Forward, which began in 2017. By November 2024, the company said more than 20,000 restaurants worldwide had been remodeled or newly built in that image.

That earlier program was announced for a global rollout in 2025. Its early-adopter list included the United States, UK, Germany, France, Saudi Arabia, Panama and Australia.

Development includes support for existing franchisees#

Subway’s September 22 Central European master-franchise agreement assigns regional expansion and support for existing franchisees to the same partner. Emerging Bites Holdings is to add 300 restaurants over 10 years across Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic. The Vienna-based group is led by Farshad Abbaszadeh, founder of German Doner Kebab.

Subway described the deal as its sixth new EMEA master-franchise agreement in under 18 months.

Emerging Bites will also operate restaurants. Its responsibilities include introducing Subway’s latest restaurant design, building digital ordering and loyalty capabilities, and investing in supply chain, marketing and operating standards.