Subway turns sandwiches into shapewear for London Fashion Week

Key Takeaways

• Subway entered the fashion world with Subway Skins, a limited-edition shapewear collection inspired by its sandwiches.

• The clothing borrows colours, curves and design details from the brand’s ingredients and made-to-order menu.

• The unexpected collection brought Subway into fashion, lifestyle and culture conversations during London Fashion Week.

• Subway Skins uses ideas including layers, fit and customisation to connect shapewear with made-to-order sandwiches.

Subway has taken its made-to-order approach to an entirely new category, swapping sandwiches for shapewear in one of the more unexpected fashion collaborations to emerge from London Fashion Week.

With a name that feels like a playful nod to Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS, the sandwich chain launched Subway Skins, a limited-edition collection of body-hugging clothing inspired by the colours, curves and layers of its most recognisable ingredients.

It might seem like an unlikely move for a fast-food brand, but there’s a surprisingly convincing connection between the two categories. From layers and fit to personalisation and shape, Subway has found a way to turn the language of sandwich-making into a fashion collection that feels both deliberately ridiculous and unmistakably on-brand.

How Subway turned its signature sandwiches into a limited-edition shapewear collection

The limited-edition Subway Skins collection takes inspiration from the brand’s Spudway jacket potato range, transforming the humble potato into something considerably more fashion-forward. The capsule includes a sleek bodysuit, fitted crop top and high-waisted shorts, all designed in earthy, potato-skin-inspired shades that wouldn't look entirely out of place in a conventional shapewear collection.

There’s also a playful nod to the shapewear industry itself, with the Subway Skins name and body-hugging designs bringing Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS to mind. The resemblance adds another layer to the joke, allowing Subway to borrow from a recognisable fashion aesthetic while giving it a distinctly food-inspired twist.

But the collection isn't just an excuse for Subway to enter the fashion world. It was created to celebrate the expansion of its Spudway menu, which now includes two new toppings, Beef Chilli and 5 Bean Chilli. Both are available on jacket potatoes, as well as in Subs, wraps and salads, bringing the brand's familiar approach to customisation into the campaign.

Rather than selling the clothing as a conventional fashion launch, Subway is giving fans the chance to win pieces from the collection through an exclusive giveaway on its UK and Ireland Instagram account, running until 24 September 2026. It's a clever way to turn an unexpected product launch into an opportunity for social engagement while introducing customers to the new menu additions.

How Subway Skins brings the brand's new Spudway menu into the fashion conversation

There are only so many ways a fast-food brand can announce something new on its menu, and Subway clearly decided that a conventional product launch wouldn't cut it this time.

By taking Subway Skins to London Fashion Week, the brand found a way to get people talking about its food without making the food itself the centre of every conversation. The collection gave fashion and lifestyle publications something unexpected to cover, while the playful resemblance to SKIMS made it instantly familiar to anyone who has followed the rise of shapewear and celebrity-led fashion brands.

What makes the campaign particularly interesting is that Subway hasn't just created something for people to look at. By giving customers the chance to win pieces from the collection, the brand has turned the launch into something its audience can get involved in, offering fans a limited-edition product that feels a little more exciting than the usual branded merchandise.

And while the clothing might seem like a strange direction for a sandwich chain, that's ultimately what makes it work. Subway has taken something people already associate with the brand, given it an unexpected fashion makeover and created a reason for customers to pay attention to its menu again, all while reaching audiences who might never have clicked on a story about a new jacket potato topping.

SOURCES

[1] Retail Times