The business world is growing faster and faster each and every day. There are many fields in which business empires have been built. There are so many kinds of businesses in which people can engage in to make a sustainable profit. One of the biggest fields being exploited today is the fast-food industry. The fast-food industry has grown quite fast, and many people have grown dependent on them for quick and cheap meals.
An example of such fast-food franchises is Dunkin’ Donuts, simply known as Dunkin’. The fast-food franchise is an American multinational coffeehouse and donut company. The company has been specializing in selling coffee and donuts for many decades now, but nowadays, the company is diversifying its products.
The company was founded in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1950 by William Rosenberg. The company has had a lot of success over the years. The company has thrived on its simple setup and menu format. They have built their franchise slowly and consistently and have been immensely successful at doing it.
William Rosenberg built the company on his background in selling food in factories and construction sites. Apart from the company’s success, the company is also energy efficient, which is evident when they won a ‘DD Green Achievement’ program.
Inception
William Rosenberg opened Open Kettle in 1948, which sold donuts and coffee. He opened this restaurant after the experience he had selling food in factories and construction sites. After talking to some executives, he changed the name to Dunkin’ Donuts in 1950. The restaurant was quite successful, and in 1955, he began selling franchises.
In 1963, William’s son, Robert, took over as CEO of the company at age 25. Dunkin’ Donuts was a subsidiary of Universal Food Systems, a conglomerate of 10 small-food service businesses. In the same year, they also opened their hundredth store. In the following years, Universal Food Systems sold or closed all of the other businesses, and the company changed its name to Dunkin’ Donuts.
The menu and the shop format became standardized, and new menu items were introduced by the company. The chain was acquired by Baskin-Robbins owner, Allied Lyons, in 1990. In 1998, the brand expanded to 2,500 locations worldwide and had $2 billion in sales annually. They also expanded again by purchasing Mister Donuts and Dawn Donuts.
In 2004, the company relocated its headquarters to Canton, Massachusetts. The following year, Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin-Robbins were sold to a private consortium of Bain Capital, Carlyle Group, and Thomas h. Lee Partners for $2.4 billion. By 2010, the global sales of Dunkin’ Donuts were $6 billion.
In January 2018, Dunkin’ Donuts introduced a new concept in their location design, which featured modern décor, cold beverages on tap, a single-cup brewing machine, and many others. In July 2018, Dave Hoffman took over as CEO from Nigel Travis and is looking forward to adding 1,000 new locations outside of the North Eastern United States. They also introduced espresso machines with new recipes in the same year.
The franchise partnered with Grubhub to begin the rollout of its new Dunkin’ deliveries. They were also the first U.S restaurant to serve Beyond Sausage after partnering with Beyond Meat. In 2019, the New York attorney general alleged in a lawsuit against Dunkin’ Donuts after a series of cyberattacks that were directed at the customers using their mobile app. The Dunkin’ spokesperson said they would continue to fight the lawsuit.
Evolution
Dunkin’ Donuts is currently one of the biggest fast-food franchises in the world today. The company has grown very fast and successfully over the years. Despite the company having a successful run over the years, it has had a few bumps along the road.
For example, from 2006 to April 2008, Dunkin’ Donuts sued its franchisees 154 times after some of its franchisees criticized Dunkin’ Donuts for allegedly forcing single-store owners to agree to a buyout at a loss for minor infractions. Otherwise, Dunkin’ Donuts remains successful despite all of these issues.
Awards & Achievements
Dunkin’ Donuts is one of the biggest fast-food franchises in the world that has achieved a lot of success. With the things that the company has done, they have received quite a number of awards as follows:
- 2009 MITX Interactive Marketer of the Year.
- 2007 Flame MenuMasters Flame of Innovation Award.
Net Worth of Dunkin’ Donuts in 2024
The company is one of the biggest fast-food franchises in the world. It is one of the biggest attractions, and for such a reason, the restaurants attract a lot of customers hence giving it a good net worth of approximately $10 billion as of December 2024.
Dunkin’ Donuts is one of the largest coffee and baked goods chains in the world. It has achieved a lot of success over the years that it has been in operation. It has been around for quite a long time and has kept smiles on people’s faces for a long time too.