Subway's new $6 deal includes drink, chips

Fast-food's magic price point — widely regarded as $5 — may be about to jump to $6.

Subway, which created the $5 Footlong deal as a way to entice customers during the heart of the recession, on Saturday will nationally roll out a new value meal twist. This one, dubbed Simple $6 Menu, features six of its core sandwiches that will be sold in 6-inch versions along with a 21-ounce fountain drink and bag of chips for $6.

That's a savings of about 75 cents to $2, depending on the market.

The deal is not a limited-time promotion but a new addition to the menu for the privately held fast-food chain. Unlike the burger giants that more typically offer a burger, fries and soft drink as their value offerings, Subway says its new value deal has some healthier options, since three of them are from its "Fresh Fit" sandwich menu.

"Value is always a turf battle in fast food. We think we have a different take on it," says Tony Pace, global chief marketing officer at Subway, in a phone interview. Instead of a short-time promotion, he says, this is a long-term program that's now part of the sandwich kingpin's menu.

The subs in the deal: Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki, Italian BMT, Turkey Breast, Tuna, Black Forest Ham, & Meatball Marinara. All of these rank among the chain's 10 best-selling sandwiches, says Pace. The Simple $6 Menu will be available in Subway's 26,908 U.S. locations.

The action comes at a time that competitive value deals across the fast-food industry have snipped away business from Subway. While the move does not replace future $5 Footlong deals at Subway, it does add a second level of value offerings to a chain eager to attract Millennial customers who demand value and better-for-you foods.

"Quick-service restaurants across the board are fighting to keep customers as more and more competitors crowd the field," says Sam Oches, editor at QSR magazine, a trade publication for the fast-food industry. "One of the ways they can do that, one of their points of differentiation, is being able to offer a strong sense of value."

Oches, however, says this doesn't quite have the aura of the $5 Footlong. "While this deal comes with a whole meal, $6 is still on the higher end, compared with a lot of other value meals offered in the quick-service industry," he says.

Dairy Queen, for example, has a $5 Buck Lunch that includes a Bacon Cheeseburger, fries, drink and sundae. And KFC has $5 Fill-Ups that include three chicken tender pieces, mashed potatoes, biscuit, medium drink and a cookie.

But Pace insists that value means more than just price to today's consumer. "Value is the combination of quality, quantity and desirability, divided by price," he says.

The expanded value offering, which has already been tested in Texas and parts of the West Coast, is not for a limited time, Pace says. While other industry deals will come and go, he says, the Simple $6 Menu will stay. "It's a square deal that customers can count on."