24 Dunkin' Donutses in Westchester and the Bronx are going bankrupt and shutting down--our paper did a story on it last week. Maybe the whole company is in trouble and they're grasping at straws (no pun intended)? They think they have to be all stupidly trendy in order to keep up with the competition? Sad.
I thought each shop was an individually owned franchise -- at least, they are in other countries. The company could well be in trouble, though, which would make me very sad indeed. Or maybe they're just losing out in a big way to Starf*cks in Westchester?
Well, I looked at the story and it said the 24 DDs were owned by a single franchisee, which is apparently in financial trouble. I don't know if that says anything about the company at large. And I wouldn't be at all surprised if your theory is right--our village, which is losing its Dunkin' Donuts, will be gaining a Starbucks.
Ah. The single franchisee aspect makes sense. Still sad, though.
And I'm not surprised to hear that Starf*cks is stepping in where DD failed. Starbucks makes most of their money from merchandise like espresso machines and mugs and ridiculously overpriced sugary beverages that masquerade as coffee, whereas DD doesn't sell any of that stuff (well, besides the mugs and the Coolattas and their attempt to ape Starbucks). I wish DD would call in an image consultant, or something, because they used to have an identity of their own and now they don't seem to know what to do besides mimic Starf*cks (who's already been there and done it better).
that's so lame. what i really like about dunkin donuts is how unpretentious they are. just "here's your coffee with ridiculous amounts of sugar and cream. now go away."
although, the one near my campus in cambridge is all uppity. it calls itself the "eliot st cafe" and has a little patio with wrought-iron furniture. totally frontin'.
I used to work around the corner (at 12 Eliot) from that one around the time they changed the name to the "Eliot St. Cafe." What was up with that? It was still full of guys wearing Carhartts who then seemed ill at ease buying their sandwiches at someplace that called itself a cafe.
Anyway, I usually got my coffee from the one in the Harvard T stop because it had sun dried tomato bagels, and nobody else did (do they still sell them? Those are my favorites). I miss how Boston/Cambridge seems to have a Dunkin' Donuts at every intersection -- not so in Brooklyn.
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And I'm not surprised to hear that Starf*cks is stepping in where DD failed. Starbucks makes most of their money from merchandise like espresso machines and mugs and ridiculously overpriced sugary beverages that masquerade as coffee, whereas DD doesn't sell any of that stuff (well, besides the mugs and the Coolattas and their attempt to ape Starbucks). I wish DD would call in an image consultant, or something, because they used to have an identity of their own and now they don't seem to know what to do besides mimic Starf*cks (who's already been there and done it better).
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although, the one near my campus in cambridge is all uppity. it calls itself the "eliot st cafe" and has a little patio with wrought-iron furniture. totally frontin'.
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Anyway, I usually got my coffee from the one in the Harvard T stop because it had sun dried tomato bagels, and nobody else did (do they still sell them? Those are my favorites). I miss how Boston/Cambridge seems to have a Dunkin' Donuts at every intersection -- not so in Brooklyn.
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What I really want to know is: Did they hire a fucking "personality expert" for this? And how much was she paid?
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