Dunkin' Donuts to Expand in SoCal in 2015

Watts January 16, 2013 at 09:59 pm

Some of the best business news that I have heard in years! DD is a way of life in many states and something that is noticeably lacking for people who live and/or travel between states with DD and those without any DDs.

Nancy Wride January 17, 2013 at 02:12 am

We were in one in Chicago a few years ago and it was nice for traveling families as it was basic but not spendy, near the art school around The Loop, And they were also nice when I called them 3 times asking whether a favorite hoodie of mine was ever turned in.:D

mary January 17, 2013 at 12:15 pm

Being from New Jersey, hearing that Dunkin Donuts coming to SoCal is wonderful news. Can't wait to have their glazed donuts, jelly donuts and my personal favorite - apple and spice. Would love to see one open in Lakewood.

Dave Newell January 17, 2013 at 12:22 pm

If you are dying for that Dunkin Donuts taste, just go to:
Boston Donuts 1151 West Imperial Highway La Habra, CA 90631 It is an old DD that is still using the DD recipes. I ran into it when I first moved back to SoCal a little over 2 years ago. But with Tim Horton's popping up everywhere back East and expansion plans for the West about the same time, I think we are going to have some donut wars.

Monique Swanson January 17, 2013 at 01:03 pm

Finally...not only the best coffee in the world...but the donuts are great also. ; )

Watts January 17, 2013 at 02:21 pm

"...I think we are going to have some donut wars."
Donut Wars! I think that I see another reality TV show in our future.

Watts January 17, 2013 at 02:28 pm

I grew up with a Dunkin just a quarter ile from my house. 18 years of hanging out eating munchkins, chocolate honey dips (now I think they are called chocolate glazed) and the very first good coffee that I had was at Dunkin Donuts when they brought in Kona blend coffee, years before Starbucks mainstreamed coffee culture.
Whenever somebody visits, they can't even believe it when they find out that there is no DD to hit in the morning. I am getting goofy about this, but I have spent all of last night telling all of my CA friends about this, because they have all heard me wishing for this for so many years.

Matt E. Valenzuela January 17, 2013 at 02:32 pm

Are we not fat enough yet? Almost everyone has read or heard about the perils of
sugar in our systems. Kids are put on Ritalin because they are high on sugar and bouncing off the walls at school. One can of soda contains over 18 teaspoons of sugar. One Dunkin Glazed donut has 12g of sugar. Both adults and children are obese; look around you. Do you want to have your kids become self-injecting adults due to diabetes? If you are reading this, you have access to the internet; look up what sugar and white flour does to the body...and then ask yourself if you want another local business that fattens the owners pocket and fattens your family.

Dave Newell January 17, 2013 at 05:15 pm

ONE donut once in a while is not a bad thing. Just like having a glass of wine or a drink once in a while is not a bad thing. All things in moderation are not BAD. It is when they are not in balance which causes issues.

Pam January 17, 2013 at 05:44 pm

I'm not fat and my children aren't either. My husband never gains weight (ugh). We eat healthy and exercise, BUT every once in a while we will eat desserts. Common sense and moderation are the keys. The people who don't have common sense are the ones with diabetes and other diseases and that's too bad for them. For us moderate people, life is much better than that! We get to enjoy things without becoming addicted to them. And it's a treat not a habit.

Local Person January 17, 2013 at 07:09 pm

It will be interesting to see if they prosper against the armies of mom & pop shops dominating the space now.
I love my little corner shop (Top Donuts) and the personal relationship I have built with it's owners. I just don't see that happening with a chain franchise. DD will need to avoid whatever pitfall Winchell's fell into back in the 80's. It's been tried and failed already here in California. Winchell's was the undisputed champion with locations everywhere. And now they are essentially gone.

Watts January 17, 2013 at 08:14 pm

Also, as somebody who has spent a lot of time in different parts of the country, the one thing that shocked me when I first moved to SoCal, was the amount of donut shops. So adding Dunkin really doesn't do much to change the landscape if you are talking about access to donuts. In fact, that is one other thing that everybody from the North East notices when visiting, is how many donut shops there are when the image that most people have of SoCal is of lean surfers and skimpy bikinis. Also, DD has far more products than just the donuts. Of course, none are likely to be healthy, but that also isn't the point of their business and we have plenty of healthy options when we want them.

Watts January 17, 2013 at 08:20 pm

Winchels was just a poorly run company. An old neighbor of mine worked in the accounting department and one day he came home and while we were getting our mail, he said to me "I just became the CFO at Winchels, but I think that it is because nobody else wanted the job."
Although, I do think that part of what kept DD from making this logical expansion earlier, is because they were one of those companies that fell victim to Mitt Romney's Bain Capital. They are one of the ones that they loaded up with debt, but were a strong enough brand to survive despite it and this is about the first sign that I have seen that they are now taking full strides again.

KathyW January 18, 2013 at 01:30 am

I like--no, make that LOVE--donuts, but I wouldn't touch Winchell's. Theirs were very greasy; I think they failed to let the hot oil get back to the proper temperature between batches which caused the dough to soak up the oil. Hurray for Dunkin' Donuts! (BTW, when I moved to the SFV in the early 80's, there was nary a donut shop along Ventura Boulevard. In fact, when I asked all these hoity-toity pastry shops where all the donut shops were, they looked down their noses at me.)

Warren G. January 19, 2013 at 10:45 am

I remember there bieing a Dunkin Donuts at Prospect & PCH in Hermosa Beach for a few years, but it didnt last. Why would they expect it to be different now? Back when I was a teen they built a DD next door to my parents house. The smell at first was good but it soon turned to be a pain in the neck. I agree that the "mom& pop" stores will survive once again and hopefully DD doesnt make this foolish mistake again.

Sandy Marchese January 19, 2013 at 12:39 pm

I think years ago there was a DD at Crenshaw and.Sepulveda. now it is a another name. How is crispy cream doing up on Artesia?

Watts January 19, 2013 at 03:33 pm

I see a couple of references to DD being in CA before, but I am 99% sure those are incorrect. I have, over the years, seen donut shops that used the color theme of Dunkin' Donuts and even use names that started with two D's, so that they would have a similar logo, but have never seen a Dunkin' Donuts and when I first moved to CA and couldn't believe that they were not here, I called their headquarters to ask about it and they said back then that there were none in CA. And I have checked the internet location finders, etc. at least once a year ever since. So it would have to be pre-1990, but even at that, as far as how companies like DD franchise, it wouldn't even make sense for them to cross the country for just one or two obscure locations. One of my college roomate's family owned 4 locations and he even dropped out of college to go in on a new franchise with his brother. I saw what DD did for franchises and the amount of research that they provided up front for determining locations is very regionally bound and wouldn't have been something that could just throw together for a couple of haphazard locations in such a massive state (probably also why they are only announcing SoCal and not all of CA now). I am sure that there may have even been a store or two who did try to use the name decades ago, without a legal franchise license, but that would also explain why these locations closed or had name changes.

Nicole Mooradian January 19, 2013 at 05:44 pm

I swear there used to be Dunkin' Donuts out here. I remember it when I was a little kid—don't remember where they were, but the name was certainly familiar to me. (This is from the person who has a weird interest in regional names—I had no idea what Edy's brand ice cream was in Virginia until I learned it was the same thing as Dreyer's. Same goes for Carls Jr. and Hardees.) It was shocking when I learned there were none in California a few years ago.

Mike January 20, 2013 at 06:09 pm

Being born in Southern California and now living in NYC, these are some of the worst donuts I have every had-no texture with a manufactured aftertaste to them. Even Krispy Kreme is way better. NYC may have the market on quality bagels but SoCal has the market on donuts esp from the local independent places on the westside that are more artisan almost. I will give you that DD has some good coffee and may give Starbucks a run esp for inexpensive good coffee, but as for donuts-long live places like Randy's.