Oh, Sweet Revenge

Dunkin’ Donuts faces two high-end rivals: Krispy Kreme and Starbucks. It’s doing just fine. A case study

By Daniel Mcginn
NEWSWEEK


Sept. 29 issue — It’s just after 4 on an early summer morning, and two uniformed men work the counter at Dunkin’ Donuts in Framingham, Mass. As they serve takeout coffee to early risers, the workers seem blithely ignorant of the enemy that’s gathering nearby. There are no lanterns visible from the Old North Church to shine a warning. But a half hour to the east, just across the Charles River in Medford, dozens of workers push trays of doughnuts around a new Krispy Kreme store as more than 100 customers line up outside.

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