The Garden City Telegram

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Quiznos closes as franchise rights expire

Published 1/1/2011 in Business : Business

Building to become location of Subway.

By DEREK THOMPSON

dthompson@gctelegram.com

Quiznos' time in Garden City has come to an end. The franchised sandwich shop closed its doors Friday after more than 13 years in business and will be converted into another sandwich shop, Subway.

Quiznos' lease agreements are for 15-year periods, and owner Clark Nelson chose not to renew the rights to his location. He purchased the franchise rights in January 1996 and opened the location in July 1997.

Nelson, 62, has said he never planned to operate beyond the first 15-year franchise agreement, and cites his age as the main factor in his decision. In addition, the costs to renew the franchise rights would be too expensive, he said.

"We never intended to renew. It would be too expensive to renew with Quiznos because they would require remodeling and new equipment and everything," he said.

Nelson said the 2,400-square-foot building, 210 E. Kansas Ave., was purchased by the owners of the two Garden City Subway restaurants and will be converted into a Subway restaurant. Brothers Dennis and Dan Rottinghaus of Rottinghaus Inc., of Onalaska, Wis., own the local Subways, as well as locations in Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Information from Rottinghaus Inc. on the acquisition was not immediately available.

Nelson said that since Quiznos went on the market in March, there were no inquiries into keeping it open as a Quiznos restaurant.

Business over the years has had its "severe ups and downs" and the restaurant had been busier than normal as the closure approached, Nelson said.

Closing Quiznos will alleviate the burdens of business ownership for Nelson.

"I think it will be a big relief not to have to worry about paying the bills and all myself," he said.

Customer Doug Laubach has become a regular at the restaurant over the years. The executive vice president of Garden City State Bank said he eats at Quiznos nearly every workday. He and his wife, Melody, ate at the restaurant one last time Friday to bid "bon voyage."

"I'm sad to see them go. It will take away some of our choices we have," Melody said.

Doug said he always got the same sandwich, even though it wasn't on the menu anymore.

"It's the old classic, classic sub. We have a special number for it; we call it the 22," he said and laughed.

Though customers may be sad to see the longtime business close, Nelson does not share the same sentiments.

"We're tired of it. It's been a long stretch," Nelson said. "We're ready to do something else."

Following the closure of Quiznos, Nelson said, he and his wife plan to take a vacation to the Philippines then return to Garden City to find employment.

"We're just going to look and see what we can find," Nelson said. "We don't know at the present."

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