Arun Mandi, left, of Voorhees, talks with Robert Baldwin, of Somers Point, general manager of the new Somers Point Dunkin’ Donuts on the former Sonic site. Mandi has 24 stores in the area and is renovating them and moving them to choice locations with drive-throughs. Photo by Danny Drake

Kevin Post of The Press of Atlantic City reports that Dunkin’ Donuts franchise owner Arun Mandi was on the threshold of what many people consider a dream career in computer engineering.

But instead, Mandi decided to work in quick-service restaurants, better known as fast food to consumers.

“I started working in Dunkin’ Donuts when I was going to school for my master’s in computer engineering, part time to fund my tuition for college,” Mandi said. “After I graduated with my master’s degree, I decided engineering was not for me.”

So he returned to working as a Dunkin’ Donuts crew member to learn the business.

“A lot of my friends went to work for companies such as Texas Instruments and American Airlines, and they said, ‘Are you crazy? What are you doing working for $6 an hour?’” Mandi said. “I got laughed at, but I did what I felt like I wanted to do.”

Nearly two decades later, the decision is looking pretty good.

Mandi, 45, is the donut king of Atlantic County, with 24 Dunkin’ Donuts stores either in the county or elsewhere in South Jersey.

And he’s far from done.

Read More at: The Press of Atlantic City

The incident triggered “a full-blown hazmat response” at the eatery on Hoosick Street, which remained closed all of Sunday, according to Assistant Chief Steve Willson of the Brunswick Fire Department No. 1. Firefighters from his company, as well as Troy and Hoosick Valley, responded to the 8:50 a.m. call. Employees in the restaurant said a white powder emerged when they cracked open a roll of pennies, prompting feelings of nausea.

Willson said the employees were completely decontaminated — their clothes were removed and they took special showers at the scene — before they were taken to St. Mary’s and Samaritan hospitals for evaluation. None were admitted, Willson said. The powder was taken to a State Police lab for testing, and the restaurant remains closed pending the result. Willson said they originally came from a local bank, which rolled them on behalf of an elderly customer.

Read more: Times Union

“I always knew today would be special, but I never dreamed it would be this grand,” said Octavio.

In a tent outside the shop, servers in retro uniforms offered free donuts, peppermint mocha lattes and cheddar bacon flatbread sandwiches to guests. The re-opening ceremony kicked off with a performance by marching bands from two local high schools. Emcees, from popular Boston radio station WROR, welcomed the crowd and introduced the first speaker John Costello, Dunkin’ Brands Chief Global Marketing and Innovation Officer.

Costello congratulated the Carvalho brothers and spoke of the location and brand’s rich heritage and bright future. “Franchisees like Victor and Octavio are our secret weapon. They are the ones who build a bond with Dunkin’ guests and with the community,” he said. “Today captures the best of the old and the new. We couldn’t be more proud of what this store represents.”

Quincy Mayor Tom Koch, State Senator John Keenan and Representative Tackey Chan followed Costello, expressing their congratulations and sincere appreciation for all the Carvalho brothers do to support the community. Each also shared his thoughts on the history and outlook of Dunkin’ Donuts in Quincy. “It seems to me the future is yesterday and it starts right here,” said Chan.

The final speaker, Victor Carvalho, received a rousing ovation as he took the podium. Victor spoke of his family’s involvement with the franchise, which began when his and Octavio’s father, Jose, took over the Southern Artery shop in 1979 from Hy Schwarz, brother-in-law of Dunkin’ Donuts Founder Bill Rosenberg.

“Octavio and I grew to understand what our family had—the history of the brand and this location. We take great pride in being able to say we own and work in the first Dunkin’ Donuts,” he said. “I can’t say enough about our team and our guests. Our guests are unique because they have an emotional connection with Dunkin’ Donuts. It’s a brand they love and want to come back to every day.”

At the close of his remarks, Victor invited his brother to join him to present a $5,000 check to Kathy Quigley and Claire Brennan of the Germantown Neighborhood Center (GNC), one of the local charities the brothers support. Since 1982, the GNC has provided critical services to youth and families in the Germantown community of Quincy.

At the close of the ceremony, guests gathered for the re-dedication of a plaque commemorating the location as the site of the original Dunkin’ Donuts and proceeded to tour the remodeled shop.

Franchise Owners Victor & Octavio Carvalo Beeming with Pride

At ages 12 and 14 respectively, Victor and Octavio began working at the store on day one of their father’s ownership. “We fell in love with it immediately,” Victor said. The brothers officially took over the franchise when their father retired in 1994. Now, Victor’s 20-year-old son works at the store while also attending Salve Regina University.

When the shop came up for its 10-year remodel, the brothers approached Dunkin’ Brands with the idea of doing something special to commemorate the historical nature of the location. Together they planned this one-of-a-kind retro remodel. To achieve the makeover, the store closed for 11 days before unveiling its new look last month.

“We’ve always been proud of this shop, but today surpassed our expectations,” said Victor. “We couldn’t be more proud to have the support of the community, our fellow franchisees and Dunkin’ corporate. We’ve all been on the same page working towards the same goal, and it all came together today in a big way. It’s such a great feeling.”

“United Capital is committed to working closely with Dunkin’ Donuts^® franchisees to provide financing for new store development, acquisitions, remodels and debt refinancing,” saysTrey Grimm, vice president and business development officer for United Capital. “We’re proud to play a part in the growth of the Dunkin’ brand.”

United Capital Business Lending, which in late 2010 acquired the small business lending operations of Butler Capital, is a subsidiary of BankUnited (NYSE: BKU), the largest bank in Florida with over $12 billion in assets. United Capital Business Lending now brings the experience of Butler Capital together with the financial strength of BankUnited.

In addition to Dunkin’ Donuts^®, the United Capital team has financed franchisees for Subway^®, Burger King^®, Wendy’s^®, Denny’s^®, Jiffy Lube^® , Five Guys^® Burgers and Fries and Jimmy John’s^® Gourmet Sandwiches among others.

For information about financing for franchise acquisition, new unit development, remodeling or refinancing, call United Capital at 866-218-4793 or visit the company’s website at www.unitedcapitalbusinesslending.com.

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Starbucks coffee K-Cup Portion Packs for the Keurig Single-Cup Brewing system hit store shelves this week at major food, drug, mass, club, specialty, and department store retailers throughout the U.S.

Starbucks Corp. is the exclusive licensed super-premium coffee brand for the Keurig Brewer, which is produced and sold by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc.

“We are excited to elevate the more than $3 billion dollar single-cup coffee category with the introduction of Starbucks coffee K-Cup Packs,” said Jeff Hansberry, president, Channel Development for Starbucks. “We have seen tremendous success in the premium single-cup category with Starbucks VIA Ready Brew and look forward to expanding our portfolio in this high-growth segment by offering our customers another way to enjoy a perfect cup of coffee at home.”

Read more at: Convenience Store Decisions

The family moved to New England from Portugal in 1966 and opened its first franchise in 1978. The family now owns the first store built in Nashua.

Robert Stebbins spent a lot of time hanging around the intersection of Main and Canal streets before the coffee shop opened in 1961. He still does and orders a medium coffee with four Sweet’N Lows a couple of times a day.

“I remember buying coffee here when it first opened,” Stebbins said. “I think it was 15 cents.”

Stebbins said when he first moved to Nashua, he hung around at a bus stop and newsstand with a pinball machine nearby and watched the trains turn around behind where the Dunkin’ Donuts building now stands.

A lot has changed in the past five decades, but the store still occupies a prime spot for a coffee shop on one of the main thoroughfares to Hudson.

Einstein Bros. unit on campus of University of Nevada–Las Vegas

Dunkin’ Donuts has been very agressive securing college campus locations.

Mark Brandau of the Nation’s Restaurant News reports that Denny’s, Bojangles’, Einstein Bros., Moe’s Southwest Grill share lessons learned from non-traditional growth.

Einstein Bros. unit on campus of University of Nevada–Las Vegas. Restaurant brands are learning to love on-campus locations as growth vehicles and testing grounds for new operations or service techniques.

Nation’s Restaurant News recently spoke with movers in the segment, including Bojangles’ Famous Chicken ’n Biscuits, Denny’s, Einstein Bros., Moe’s Southwest Grill and Beef O Brady’s to share lessons learned.

Bojangles’ Famous Chicken ’n Biscuits opened its first on-campus restaurant Monday at the University of North Carolina–Greensboro. First-week sales surpassed $50,000 for a unit of about 600 square feet, said Eric Newman, executive vice president of Charlotte, N.C.-based Bojangles’. That kind of performance makes higher-education locations “a valuable tool” for accelerating the brand’s already rapid growth, he said.

“[Non-traditional growth] can bolster what you already have and increase market share in penetrated markets, or be a spearhead to introduce more people to the brand,” Newman said. “It’s a great addition to reach people you’re not reaching normally at certain dayparts.”

For instance, he said, Bojangles’ can drive strong sales at lunch from students at the on-campus unit without cannibalizing sales from its three locations in Greensboro near the university.

Read More at: Nation’s Restaurant News

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Delayed Dunkin’ Donuts opening set for first week in December at UNH

Martine Powers of the Boston Globe reports that Starbucks was adding about $1.50 to the price of bags of coffee beans weighing less than a pound, never posting the addition to the price.

The Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation discovered the practice in late August and fined five Starbucks locations with $1,575 for overcharge violations two weeks ago.

Last week, Starbucks nixed the $1.50 fee – and not just in Massachusetts. Pressure from the state’s consumer agency spurred the company to eliminate the extra charge nationwide.

“It’s a message to the whole marketplace,’’ Barbara Anthony, undersecretary of the Office of Consumer Affairs, said in a phone interview yesterday. “We have to be able to trust that the price we’re paying is the price we should be paying for a particular commodity.’’

When a customer ordered a bag of coffee beans weighing less than 1 pound, Starbucks tacked on about $1.50 to the price without putting up signs about the fee in the store or itemizing the extra charge on receipts.

For example, beans listed at $11.95 per pound ended up costing $7.45 for a half-pound – not $5.98, or 50 percent of the price.

Read More: The Boston Globe

That’s the situation the Coalition of Franchisee Associations (CFA) says veteran franchisees are increasingly facing as their agreements come up for renewal. And that’s the climate new franchisees are entering when they sign into systems where the power and control have shifted dramatically to the corporate side.everyone together to stand up for important considerations is a positive move in unifying franchisees.”

“Over the last 30 years, franchise agreements have become more onerous and one-sided,” says Jim Coen, vice chairman of the CFA and president of Dunkin’ Donuts Independent Franchise Owners. “They say nobody puts a gun to a franchisee’s head to sign these contracts, but that contract is a loaded gun. The flip side is, if you walk away or walk out, the franchise agreement makes it hard to harvest the equity you’ve built up in your business. Some of these agreements are pretty much intolerable.”

Read More at: Entrepreneur Magazine

Central kitchens can budget to the penny

Any budget item that can be stabilized in these volatile economic times is one less worry for business owners like Mark Dubinsky, CEO of a Central Production Location (CPL) in Methuen, Mass. When that line item is your energy cost, all the more important, Dubinsky said.

Dubinsky–who has run the facility since it opened a decade ago–provides donuts and other fresh-baked goods to 92 Dunkin’ Donuts locations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Many of these customers operate units that used to be part of Dubinsky’s 27-unit Dunkin’ Donut franchise operation years ago. Like all CPL operators, Dubinsky said it’s all about delivering the freshest, best-tasting donuts on time, every time.

“One thing that drives a CPL crazy is not being able to budget cost,” Dubinsky said. And there are a number of costs to factor in when operating a facility almost around-the-clock. “Food costs are at mercy of the market,” Dubinsky gave as one example.

“You make your best educated guess when do your budgeting,” he said, but there are no guarantees. But when it comes to his energy costs, Dubinsky has known the price to the penny since contracting with Secure Energy Solutions (SES) several years back.

Based in East Longmeadow, Mass., SES is a licensed aggregator and authorized agent in the energy market. As explained by Erik J. Ness, Vice President and General Counsel for SES, energy bills are divided into two charges: delivery and generation. The delivery charge is the cost to physically deliver either electricity or natural gas to one’s home or business; the generation charge is the cost to purchase that energy on the customer’s behalf.

The delivery charge and service will always come from the local distribution companies such as National Grid and NStar. In other words, Ness explained, “when the power goes out, that’s who you call.”

The generation end, however, is controlled by the end-user¬, i.e. the customer paying the bill. It used to be that the local energy distribution company controlled both delivery and generation, but since the 1980s, many states have been restructuring their electric and natural gas utilities (often referred to as “Energy Deregulation.”) In New England, all states except Vermont have deregulated their electric and natural gas utilities. Customers in these states are free to shop around in the energy market for the best rate.

“But just like the stock market, the energy market can change day-to-day, hour-by-hour,” Ness said. Keeping track of energy prices can be a full-time job. Indeed, SES has a full-time “pricing staff” that does just that. It is their job to keep customers like Dubinsky informed of changes in the energy market and when it might be best to lock in a price for the upcoming contract.

According to Ness, when meeting with a potential client, SES will obtain authorization from that client to review previous energy bills to develop what’s called a “load profile.” The needs of each customer will differ based on usage patterns, peak hours, and other considerations that factor into overall energy consumption. In the case of most CPL’s, energy usage is very predictable.

SES uses this “load profile” to then price out different suppliers. Once the best rate is found, it is then signed into a contract, which typically runs from one to three years.

Having the price locked for up to three years is different than what customers will experience if they opt to go with the local utility for generation charges, Ness said. For some rate classes, the utilities will adjust rates as frequently as monthly. Sometimes the rate goes up; other times it goes down. In either case, the actual cost may vary dramatically from what had been budgeted.

“And that’s a problem,” Dubinsky said. He prefers the fixed energy cost through contracting with SES to the fluctuations in price when dealing with the local utility provider.

“It’s stability,” Dubinsky said, “which in the long run means saving money.”