Krispy Kreme Awards First Franchise to Nonprofit Organization

Winston-Salem, North Carolina—May 23, 2002—Krispy Kreme Doughnuts has awarded a franchise for a new outlet in Greensboro, NC, to Project Homestead, a community development corporation (CDC). It will be the first time that Krispy Kreme has awarded a franchise to a nonprofit organization according to just-food.com.

Scott Livengood, chairman, president and CEO of Krispy Kreme, insisted: "This unique business relationship reflects Krispy Kreme's desire and commitment to expand into neighborhoods that traditionally have been underserved."

Rev. Michael King, president of Project Homestead, told just-food.com that obtaining the franchise is a major step toward self-sustainability for his CDC. "In the long-term, we simply have to find more ways to generate income and decrease our reliance on grants and contributions," he said. "We've all been talking about it, and some of us have been moving more aggressively than others. We believe Project Homestead can prove that corporations can make sound investments in low-resource communities with CDCs as responsible partners."

Krispy Kreme will retain a 49% ownership stake in the franchise Livengood said, but initial profits from the new store will be used to buy out Krispy Kreme's stake "as early as possible".