Sub Sandwich, Not Sub-Par

Following up on this post from a couple of days ago, the intrepid manager of a Quizno's franchise whose owners abandoned the store has been promoted.

It's a happy ending for the can-do manager of an orphaned fast-food restaurant.

As earlier reported in Out There, Dawna Lentz, the manager of a Seattle Quiznos Sub (search) franchise, kept things going on a shoestring budget for two months after the restaurant's owners dropped out of the picture, deliveries stopped coming and the bank account emptied out.

After the store's dire situation was reported in the Seattle Times last week, the Quiznos company restocked the shelves, paid back wages and began to find new owners.

Lentz, however, was sure she'd be fired for running the restaurant without supervision.

Instead, she's being given more management training in preparation for a promotion and is flying to Quiznos headquarters to meet the company president.

"She's shown loyalty to Quiznos like no other employee has," corporate spokeswoman Stacie Lange told the Times. "Her ability to keep that store afloat through a very difficult time needs to be commended."

She's even getting job offers from competing fast-food chains.

"Ms. Lentz did a remarkable job of overcoming adversity through persistence and creativity," a Wendy's vice president wrote in an e-mail. "We would love to have Dawna on our team."

This is pretty amazing, it really is. I'm still astonished that the story didn't get up to corporate headquarters sooner, but it appears that the natural talent and enduring spirit of this woman is being well rewarded. For what it's worth, Quizno's makes the best sandwiches out there (Chicken Carbonara, Philly Cheese Steak, Turkey Bacon Guacamole... Mmmmmmmmm... ). Their ability to break the Subway/Blimpie's cabal on the market by presenting a better product (and forcing the other guys to adapt), and this example of rewarding Ms. Lentz for her outstanding conduct in a true trial of fire, are excellent examples of why Capitalism works.