Subway opens on Sherman

COEUR d'ALENE - They say that when God closes a door, he opens a window.

Well, when Jerry Jensen closes a Subway, which is unusual, he opens another - and likely another and another.

The owner of six Subways in Coeur d'Alene and Hayden sat inside his newest store on Seventh and Sherman that opened Monday.

"Obviously in the summertime we're going to get a ton more traffic, and that's a big thing," he said.

The 1,700-square-foot store is in a prime location to continue drawing big weekday lunch crowds, as well as increasing customer count for dinners and weekends.

"I think that really was the driving force behind this," Jensen said.

The Northwest Boulevard store that was open several years closed last week. Both entering and exiting the site was difficult because of the traffic.

That won't be the case downtown.

Whether driving or walking, the Sherman store offers a nearby client base, easy access, with plenty of parking. It has about 10 employees, and Jensen expects to hire five more.

Tuesday, Jensen was chatting with staff in the new store, reviewing details of the operation and helping where needed during lunch.

"I'll just be here until the work is done," he said.

Jensen's other Subways are at Fourth and Best, Kathleen and Government Way inside the Chevron station, Atlas and Prairie, Hayden off Orchard and U.S. 95, and inside the Hayden Walmart.

All told, he operates 15 Subways. He attributes his success to his staff that includes a manager at each store, and three regional managers.

"They've kept everything else set to go and running smoothly," he said.

Jensen said he might not be done opening Subways in Coeur d'Alene. He has had some preliminary talks on a possible location, but declined to give specifics.

"There might be another one coming," he said.