Subway gift cards are now available at Wal-Mart, CVS, Rite Aid, the Army-Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) to authorized patrons only, Fifth Third Bank, Barnes & Noble College Bookstores, Long’s Drugs, Kerr Drug, H-E-B Grocery, Winn-Dixie, Hastings, Schnuck Markets, and Brookshire Brothers in the U.S. and in Canada at American Greetings, Glentel, Pharmacy 1 and Shoppers Drug Mart. Additional launches in the coming months will include Wal-Mart, Jean Coutu, and Familiprix in Canada.

The agreement with the retailers was brokered on behalf of SUBWAY restaurant franchisees by its Independent Purchasing Cooperative (IPC). The cards are available at retailers through a distribution agreement with InComm, the largest provider of third-party gift cards and prepaid products.

“We have also heard from some people who want to use the Subway Card as a business tool by including their business information on the card for distribution,” said Ned Daley, marketing programs specialist for the restaurant chain.

The cards are additionally still available at participating Subway restaurants as well as online at www.mysubwaycard.com, where consumers can now customize their cards with their favorite images on the front; from photos of their children or pets to a famous landmark or country icon.

The cards can be used as a gift or personal spending card, as well as for incentives and awards. They can be activated in-store by simply selecting a dollar amount between $5 and $100 to activate. Cards purchased through retail outlets come with pre-set dollar amounts. Regardless of where a card is purchased, it is reusable and reloadable at any time.

The IPC also partnered with the National Gift Card Corporation (NGC) as a way to increase sales to businesses that can use the card for such things as employee incentives, rewards or fundraising programs. To date, NGC has achieved nearly $2 million in card sales.