In back 2022, this partnership between two giants of the fast-food industry occurred, pertaining to the association with McDonald’s (MCD) and Krispy Kreme (DNUT).
Announced in March 2024, the alliance would give rise to the showcasing of Krispy Kreme doughnuts through McDonald’s.
According to Krispy Kreme, this would speed up distribution two fold by 2026.
It started in Louisville, KY, and the immediate neighboring areas of nine McDonald’s locations selling three popular kinds of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts: Original Glazed Doughnut, Chocolate Iced with Sprinkles Doughnut, and Raspberry Filled Doughnut.
They say that Krispy Kreme doughnuts will be available at any participating McDonald’s nationwide by the end of 2026. The doughnuts will be sold either individually or by boxes of six from breakfast and go on through the day.
In March 2024, a deal was agreed upon for selling Krispy Kreme doughnuts at McDonald’s fast-food places starting in the second half of the year. This decision came after a pilot was conducted in 160 locations in Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky.
About 2,400 outlets of McDonald’s had brought into production doughnuts by March 30, 2025.
In the very same month, Chicago-headquartered McDonald announced the launch of three types of Krispy Kreme doughnuts for sale, following a successful trial in Kentucky. The doughnuts could be purchased individually or in a box of six at selected locations.
The Resolution is to be Enforced on 2 July 2025.
Doughnut and coffeehouse Krispy Kreme USA and fast-food giant McDonald’s have mutually agreed to terminate the partnership due to profitability issues.
The stocks were at their highest point in eight months, and were just about to mark their biggest gain in percentage ever.
About 14,000 McDonald’s stores operate in the U.S., and it said in December that it wanted to see about 10,000 restaurants open globally by 2027.
It was a partnership that, initially, looked to be a big success; with McDonald’s-the global fast-food giant-and Krispy Kreme-the adored doughnut brand-with cult following-joining forces in March 2024 to roll out Krispy Kreme doughnuts in all U.S. McDonald’s locations by the end of 2026. It was considered a mutual strategic understanding, which gave McDonald’s a competitive advantage in its breakfast slot and also distribution leverage for Krispy Kreme.
However, what started with excitement quickly got sour. The two companies declared on Tuesday that the partnership would dissolve on July 2, 2025, cutting short what should have been a long-term, nationwide integration.
As explained by their CEO Krispy Kreme, Charlesworth, “Our global objective of bringing our costs down in line with unit demand sadly failed at this point.”
Krispy Kreme further clarified that during the partnership period, its operations accounted for only a small, non-material part of said fast-food chain’s breakfast sales.
In an announcement made in August 2024, Krispy Kreme planned to ramp up doughnut sales in 12,000 McDonald’s outlets by the end of 2026. (EconoTimes)
Afterward, Krispy Kreme Halted the Rollout for Fear of Weak Demand and Profitability.
In May 2025, on the other hand, the doughnut chain stated that it is reassessing its rollout schedule as the companies strive to establish a “profitable business model” for the benefit of both parties, with no new openings expected in the second quarter of 2025.
In the same month, it became known that the company faces a class action lawsuit by investors who claim to have been misled into believing about the chain’s halted expansion into McDonald’s restaurants.
The Krispy Kreme-McDonald’s expansion started in late October 2022, with a pilot project selling three types of Krispy Kreme doughnuts at nine McDonald’s restaurants in the Louisville area of Kentucky. Then in February 2023, the test was increased to 160 McDonald’s locations around Louisville, Lexington, and environs. The next step in the plan to sell Krispy Kreme doughnuts at McDonald’s stores across the U.S. was announced in March 2024 with an intent to start rolling the collaboration out in phases in the second half of 2024, with full rollout expected by the end of 2026.
But fissures occurred in the relationship earlier this year. In late February, while announcing fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 results, Charlesworth said that the demand had slipped. It was below the expected value. The donuts had low visibility on menus at McDonald’s locations that had ceased local marketing, thereby bringing down consumer awareness, he said. However, Charlesworth also mentioned that Krispy Kreme still expected to have donuts selling at 6,000 McDonald’s locations by the end of 2025.
