Krispy Kreme:The hot light is coming

When Jim Fuentebella, managing director of the Max’s Restaurant chain, heard some quarters were laying claims to bagging the elusive Krispy Kreme franchise for the Philippines, he felt more amused than surprised. After all, it was, in fact, the Max’s group that clinched that deal following two and a half years of negotiations with the American icon.

By next month, Filipinos will now have a firsthand taste of what Americans have been feasting on since the 1930s - the Krispy Kreme doughnut line anchored by the hot original glazed doughnuts, best served right after the classic "HOT DOUGHNUTS NOW" neon light sign outside the store flashes on.

The flagship Krispy Kreme outlet will open on Nov. 30 at the City Center in Bonifacio Global City while a second store will quickly follow at SM Megamall’s Building B in December.

As part of the franchise agreement, the Max’s group - through its wholly-owned corporate vehicle The Real American Doughnut Co. Inc. chaired by Fuentebella - will put up about 30 stores over the next five years, with each store costing around $1 million to build.

Fuentebella, confident that there’s still a big market for doughnuts in the country even with the established presence of three major players and several other smaller, but niched brands, said Krispy Kreme’s solid reputation would hopefully lead to similar long queues at their stores, particularly during opening days.

"In the US, people would line up hours before a store opens for business for the first time to be among the first to get hold of the doughnuts hot off the oven. Of course it helps that the store also gives away free doughnuts," he said.

He pointed out that before their first Philippine store opens, they would be giving away as many as 100,000 free doughnuts as they make their marketing and advertising rounds. In addition, local doughnut aficcionados are encouraged to register at http://www.krispykreme.com.ph, the local chain’s Internet address, for more surprise treats, Fuentebella said.

He said most of the Krispy Kreme stores will be like "doughnut theaters," which are specially designed to showcase the doughnut-making process and provide a multi-sensory experience for customers. These stores will have glass viewing areas that allow customers to watch the doughnuts being made through the operation of doughnut making machines, which automatically produce rings of dough, yeast raise, bake, deep-fry, flip, and glaze the doughnuts.

While Krispy Kreme serves up a variety of doughnuts, it is most famous for its traditional glazed doughnut, a very light, aromatic doughnut covered in glaze and often served warm. Until now, the recipe remains a secret since its founder first made them in 1937 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the company’s present headquarters.

Aside from the "Hot Original Glazed," Krispy Kreme also offers nearly 30 varieties of yeast-raised and cake doughnuts such as glazed cinnamon, chocolate iced glazed, choco iced with sprinkles, choco iced kreme filled, glazed cruller, dulce de leche, maple iced glazed, sugar coated, cinnamon bun, powdered bluebery filled, caramel kreme crunch, and the traditional cakes, among others.

Fuentebella said for the Philippine market, they would be initially selling 15 doughnut varieties including, of course, the hot original glazed. To complement the doughnuts, the stores also offer coffee roasts, espresso drinks and frozen blends.

Currently, there are about 310 Krispy Kreme stores and 90 satellites operating in the US, the UK, Australia, Canada, Mexico, South Korea, Indonesia and Hong Kong. As part of its Asian and Middle East expansion, Krispy Kreme also recently awarded franchises in Japan, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

With nearly 4,000 employees worldwide, Krispy Kreme produces 7.5 million doughnuts daily or 2.7 billion a year. Its place in American society was recognized in 1997 with the induction of Krispy Kreme artifacts to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.