Jared S. Fogle (born December 1, 1977), also known as the Subway Guy, is a spokesman employed by Subway in its advertising campaigns. He is known for his significant weight loss (now known as the "Subway diet"), attributed to eating Subway sandwiches, which led to his role promoting the companyFogle first came to media attention in April 1999, after Ryan Coleman, a former dormmate of Fogle, wrote an article for Indiana Daily Student about Fogle's weight loss. Men's Health magazine confirmed the story and included the "Subway sandwich diet" in an article, "Stupid Diets. . . that Work!" According to the article, Fogle had become obese by eating junk food and not exercising.
Switching to eating at Subway, he changed his eating habits there to include healthier choices and smaller portions free of fattening condiments such as mayonnaise, which was followed by his significant weight loss. A Chicago-area Subway franchisee took the idea to Subway's Chicago advertising agency.[1] The agency confirmed the story by visiting a Subway franchise near the Indiana University campus, where the staff identified him from his description.
As a test, the company ran a regional ad campaign. The first spot aired on January 1, 2000, introducing Fogle and his story, complete with a disclaimer: "The Subway diet, combined with a lot of walking, worked for Jared. We're not saying this is for everyone. You should check with your doctor before starting any diet program. But it worked for Jared."
Subway has used Fogle in a number of television commercials and sponsored in-store appearances throughout the United States. Fogle spoke at the grand opening of the first Kosher Subway in Cleveland.[4] Fogle gives regular talks on fitness and healthy eating. In 2008, a Subway campaign celebrated Fogle's maintaining his weight loss for a full decade, with his announcement that he would retire his old pair of 62-inch (1.6 m) pants likely to a museum after a final "Tour de Pants" (a humorous reference to the Tour de France).
Fogle's presence in advertisements has decreased since 2008 due to the company placing more emphasis on its popular "$5 Footlong" promotion as opposed to nutritional value,[7] but by 2013 he had filmed more than 300 commercials and continues to make appearances and speeches for the company. Subway attributes one third to one half of its growth in sales—more than tripling from 1998 to 2011—to Fogle.
