When Independent Joe reached out to industry-watchers to get their reaction to the Inspire Brands $11 billion purchase of Dunkin’, we heard terms like “stratospheric” and “through the roof” used to describe the $106.50 per share price Inspire agreed to pay for the Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins flag. Jonathan Maze, editor of Restaurant Business magazine, put…
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According to the Federal Highway Administration (FHA), travel on U.S. roads fell nearly 40 percent in April 2020 compared to the previous April, dropping to the lowest point in 25 years. FHA notes the Northeast region saw the largest drop in miles driven. As COVID-19 upended life’s typical routines – like commuting to work –…
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In late May, with cities and states loosening shelter-in-place restrictions brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, Dunkin’ Brands announced it was ready to examine how to best reopen its seating areas. In a blog post dated May 29, Dunkin’ wrote, “We are now exploring the most judicious ways to once again offer in-restaurant dining,” emphasizing,…
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Few of today’s Dunkin’ franchisees can say they’ve been with the brand for 50 years. And only one (that we know of) has logged more than 20 years at both Dunkin’ Brands and as a franchisee. So, when it came time to talk about the evolution of Dunkin’ Donuts, it was an easy decision to…
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In mid-January, the law firm Paris Ackerman announced the acquisition and financing of 47 Dunkin’ franchised restaurants in Southeast Florida. That came a week after the firm announced the acquisition and financing of 11 Dunkin’s – and five parcels of real estate – in New York. At the end of January, the firm announced it…
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The Gaylord Opryland Hotel has a long and storied history. Initially designed to emulate a southern estate, the Opryland Hotel opened to much fanfare on Thanksgiving Day, 1977. During the 1980s, the property expanded in size by two acres and added more than 1,200 guest rooms, a garden conservatory and waterfalls. And in the 1990s,…
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As franchisee profits were declining, brand leaders initiated cost-cutting moves to help bolster its earnings—ignoring a plea from its independent franchisee association to get together and talk about the issues that were crippling the company. This was the climate at Jack in the Box in July 2018 when its independent franchisee association, the JIB-NFA (National…
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October 28th & 29th, 2019 DDIFO Conference Home At 6.7 million square feet, Foxwoods Resort and Casino is larger than the Pentagon. Since it opened – first as a high-stakes bingo hall in 1986 and then as a full-fledged casino in 1992 – Foxwoods has raked in billions of dollars in revenue. This year, Foxwoods…
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Dunkin’ franchisees from across New England gathered in late April for the annual NE regional meeting. DDIFO invited new business members to join the event at the Sheraton Needham Hotel. Labor attorney Dan Field, a former Chief of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Fair Labor Division, was a featured speaker and touched on critical issues like…
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Espresso-based drinks are “the future” Espresso is a term derived from the Latin “to press” and the Italian word for “to press out.” It refers to strong black coffee made by forcing steam through finely-ground coffee beans. In Italy, people stand and socialize at their local espresso bar while they wait for their hot shot to…
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