First for hospital as Subway opens

A new hospital food outlet has finally opened at Cannock hospital after electrical problems delayed the opening.

Two local entrepreneurs have opened the first ever Subway in a UK hospital and have created 14 new jobs.

The opening of the Subway in Cannock Chase Hospital by Paresh Modi and Satveer Singh, with the support of NatWest Business Banking, follows the closure of the hospital's canteen and comes after 12 months of careful planning.

This is the second Subway for business partners Paresh and Satveer, who established a restaurant in Rugeley in 2006.

The Rugeley restaurant sells over 1,000 sandwiches a week and provides employment for 14 people. Paresh and Satveer have said the opening of the new Cannock Chase Hospital shop is the next step in building their own business empire and they plan to open more restaurants in the near future.

The news of Paresh and Satveer's new Subway franchise comes as a survey by the British Franchise Association announced that despite an uncertain economic backdrop, the growth of franchising in the West Midlands continues to grow.

The industry boasts a turnover local of £900 million, up nine per cent in 12 months and across the UK the industry is worth a record £12.4 billion. Paresh Modi said: "Satveer and I have been successfully managing the Subway in Rugeley and I'm sure that, together with the healthy nature of our food, helped us with our application to open the restaurant in the hospital.

"We are really excited about the opening of the new shop and we would like to thank everybody who has helped us to realise our dream, especially James Fleck and the rest of the team at the Subway chain, the people at the hospital and NatWest manager Rob Taylor. Without their help and support this would not have been possible."

Rob Taylor, NatWest senior business development manager, said: "The new restaurant looks fantastic and I know it will be an important addition to Cannock Chase Hospital."