Firehouse Subs Cofounder Chris Sorensen Dies at 65

Chris Sorensen, who cofounded Firehouse Subs in 1994 with less than $100 in the bank, has died at 65. The chain he built with his younger brother Robin eventually surpassed 1,200 locations and sold to Restaurant Brands International for $1 billion.

The Sorensen brothers opened the first Firehouse Subs in Jacksonville, Florida, with under $100 combined in their checking accounts. That's roughly $210 in today's dollars — less than the cost of a week's produce order for most operators.

Sorensen's path to the sandwich business ran through two other careers. Born in 1960 in Jacksonville to Robert and Wanda Sorensen, he first aimed at professional music and was a gifted guitarist. He then followed his father into firefighting, serving with the Brevard County Fire Department, the Jacksonville International Airport Fire and Rescue Department, and finally the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department for 10 years.

That background became the chain's operating identity. Firehouse built its menu around steamed meats and cheeses on toasted rolls — the signature Hook & Ladder pairs turkey and ham with Monterey Jack — and themed every restaurant around fire service. Sorensen handled the creative side of the design, and each location carries a custom mural reflecting the fire and police history of its own town. For a fast-casual brand competing against Subway and Jersey Mike's, that decor did marketing work no ad spend could replicate at the unit level.

What survives beyond the restaurants?

The brothers also left a philanthropic apparatus that outlasted their ownership. In 2005 they established the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation, which funds lifesaving equipment, tools, and training for first responders. It has awarded more than $118 million in grants across 7,700 departments in the U.S. and Canada — an average of roughly $15,000 per department over two decades.

Restaurant Brands International, which also owns Burger King, acquired the chain at its peak of more than 1,200 units, folding Firehouse into a portfolio that now spans burgers, coffee, and chicken.

Who was Sorensen outside the business?

Music stayed with him throughout. He played several instruments and sat in with bands including Earth, Wind & Fire, Lonestar, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Huey Lewis and the News, and Foreigner. He was also a serious student of history — archaeology, paleontology, and the space program — collected historical artifacts, and effectively served as the brand's in-house archivist.

He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Kirsten "Puschel" Sorensen; son Eric; daughters Steffi Sorensen and Brittany Cooney; six grandchildren; his parents; and siblings Lisa, Robin, Cecily, and Chadwick.

Firehouse Subs continues to operate under RBI's ownership, and the foundation's grant pipeline to first-responder departments remains active as the brand's most visible legacy outside the restaurants themselves.