Panera announced last month that it was introducing a new drink cup with a base that pops off and can be used as a charging base for a cell phone. The launch ties in with new Charged Lemonade drinks introduced earlier in the spring that are made with plant-based caffeine. They are part of the…
Read More »Although perhaps not considered direct competitors with Dunkin’, we noted that Panera is testing artificial intelligence coffee makers. In partnership with Miso Robotics, Panera is introducing “CookRight Coffee”, an AI-powered system that the company claims will monitor coffee metrics such as volume, temperature and time data with predictive analysis. And finally, I’ll confess to a…
Read More »
For a time last year, Dunkin’ customers across the country were sliding clear plastic straws into their cold beverages. Most probably didn’t notice the typical orange and purple stripes were missing. Others, no doubt, chalked it up to something else that had changed during the pandemic. Indeed, straws are just one piece of a complicated…
Read More »
“You have to ask yourself, ‘Do we really even need dining rooms?’” That question, from Florida franchisee John Griffey, is on the mind of virtually every QSR operator. “I think the world has changed forever. More and more, people don’t really want to come inside the stores, and Covid moved everybody to the digital world,”…
Read More »
Back in 2014, Dunkin’ Donuts franchisees were adding amenities like free Wi-Fi, comfortable seating and even conference rooms to appeal to a growing sector of people staying connected and working remotely. By then, Dunkin’ had already established itself as a leader in drive-thru service—having helped pioneer the modern drive-thru experience. But in the late 2000s…
Read More »
The coronavirus pandemic has had a profound impact on the restaurant industry. By the beginning of Q4 2020, more than 1.4 million jobs in franchised businesses were lost and more than 32,000 franchised businesses had closed. Now, with states opening up and a gradual return to business as usual, we are cautiously approaching the light…
Read More »
While the coronavirus pandemic has changed many things in our daily lives, it has not had much of a jolt on coffee consumption. In fact, our collective thirst for coffee is only expected to grow next year. For Dunkin’ franchisees, that is just the kind of reassurance they need after a uniquely challenging year and…
Read More »A recent report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that adults who tested positive for COVID-19 were twice as likely to have reported eating at a restaurant within the prior two weeks. There’s a lot more to that story, however. The study authors themselves admit to at least five significant limitations…
Read More »
In the months before anyone was talking about coronavirus, the outlook at Jack in the Box was bleak. Since 2015, sales had been on a mostly flat trajectory, powered by low price meal deals. Increases in sales were modest and typically not enough to offset the rising cost of labor and goods. For the franchisees,…
Read More »