Dorothy Brush "Random Thoughts" Published Aug. 13, 2003

Mmmm! Doughnuts are good!

Several weeks ago David Spates' column gave me a chuckle because that young man was actually taking a stroll down memory lane. The chuckle turned to a gnashing of teeth as I realized his subject was Krispy Kreme doughnuts. For some months I have been collecting information on that very subject for a future column and the future is now.

Unlike David, my relationship with Krispy Kremes didn't begin until I moved south. These tasty hunks of dough were unknown in my Ohio town of Lima. I can understand his fond memories of that special treat because in my town it was and still is, Kewpie Hamburgers.

When Krispy Kremes started in Winston-Salem, NC in 1937, I doubt they had grandiose dreams of expanding across the country. Eventually, they opened shops across the southeast, but it was not until several years ago they began their march nationwide. In New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles crowds lined up when the sign "HOT DOUGHNUTS NOW" lit up. Every day 7.5 million of those hot glazed treats are turned out. In 2002, sales hit $622 million. The company stock was opened to the public in 2000.

In the March issue of Boston Magazine there was a long feature article called "The Doughnut War." For some reason Krispy Kreme had stayed away from New England as they expanded. Two years ago came their public announcement that they were about to invade the northeast. One of their first shops was in a suburb of Hartford, CT and when it opened, there was a traffic jam that brought police to unsnarl the mess. Unfazed, the fans stood in line to buy their doughnuts.

Legend has it that the doughnut was accidentally invented in Maine in 1847 when a youngster poked his fork through the fried dough cakes his mother was making. The article described Boston as not just another market for doughnuts but the promised land. New England is No. 2 in the number of doughnut shops after No. 1 California.

Since 1950, Dunkin' Doughnuts has reigned as top dog in New England. The chain has 3,829 stores across the United States and 600 of them are in the Boston area. Outwardly, Dunkin' Doughnuts is putting on a calm face as Krispy Kreme approaches. However, the author of the article found in his investigation that the firm has been quietly taking surveys and updating their menus and stores as they prepare for the onslaught.

Business pages have taken note of the coming battle. In April it was announced that Krispy Kreme is expanding their holdings to more provinces in Canada. A news release on Aug. 6 revealed Krispy Kreme is opening its first store in Europe at the fashionable department store Harrods in London.

A few days earlier Dunkin' Doughnuts announced it will expand its pilot program of placing their shops inside stores. This experiment began in New England last year in three Home Depot stores. The program will continue at the Cumberland Home Depot in metro Atlanta.

Dunkin' Doughnuts have many varieties of doughnuts and Krispy Kreme has 25, but it is the glazed that is the star. Another sidelight of Krispy Kreme's business is the help they offer to schools and other nonprofits. Since the 1950s they sell boxes of doughnuts to these groups at half price and allow them to charge full price and keep the profits. Across the country last year more than $43 million worth of the confections were sold this way.

Mmmmmmmmmm, doughnuts are good!

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Dorothy Copus Brush is a Fairfield Glade resident and Crossville Chronicle staffwriter whose column is published each Wednesday.