Jersey Mike’s Subs announced the launch of a nationwide recruitment program looking for new employees that can eventually have the opportunity to become store managers and owners.

A national TV ad will begin airing featuring Jersey Mike’s Founder Peter Cancro talking about the opportunity that was created for him to purchase the original Mike’s Subs store in Point Pleasant, NJ by Rod Smith, Peter’s Youth Football Coach and a local banker. Coach Smith provided Peter with a $125,000 loan to secure the business. That $125,000 investment has turned Jersey Mike’s into a $2 billion dollar company with over 2,000 stores opened across the country.

Earlier this year, Jersey Mike’s launched the Coach Rod Smith Ownership Program, an investment model that will give managers or assistant managers the track to ownership who cannot get a loan on their own. Cancro says, “He was given the opportunity at 17 years old as a Senior in High School and now he wants to give others the same opportunity … to become an owner.”

Cancro’s message to individuals looking for an opportunity is to look to Jersey Mike’s as a career path. “We want individuals to come and grow with us and see Jersey Mike’s as a place that can become their career,” notes Cancro. “What Rod Smith did for me changed my life and I want everyone that becomes part of the Jersey Mike’s family to know that the future is unlimited for them, from becoming a store manager to eventually an owner. Anyone joining Jersey Mike’s will know they have a voice with our company and that it will matter.”