Krispy Kreme, Inc.
Krispy Kreme, Inc. makes and sells fresh doughnuts and related sweet treats through a global omni-channel network of shops, fresh delivery routes, and digital ordering. The company combines company-operated locations with franchised shops and uses a hub-and-spoke production model to keep products fresh while expanding internationally.
Fiscal year 2025 · change from previous year
Development 2019–2025
Business
Share of revenueFresh doughnuts and other indulgent bakery items sold directly to consumers in shops and kiosks.
Delivered doughnuts sold through grocery, club, convenience, drug, and restaurant partners.
Online and app-based pickup and delivery orders through Krispy Kreme and third-party platforms.
Fees, royalties, and related income from franchise partners operating Krispy Kreme shops.
Sales of doughnut mix, concentrate, ingredients, and equipment to franchisees and partners.
Products
Reported · share of revenue- Finished Product In Shops94.7 %
- Mix and Equipment Revenue From Franchisees2.7 %
- Royalty2.4 %
- Advertising0.2 %
Source: 10-K FY2025, revenue the company reports per product line (SEC XBRL). Shares are of the lines shown and add up to 100 %.
Customers
Krispy Kreme sells to individual consumers seeking fresh, branded indulgent treats, but a meaningful share of revenue also comes from retail and foodservice partners that buy doughnuts for resale. The company serves grocery stores, club wholesalers, convenience stores, drug stores, and QSR/fast-casual partners through fresh delivery, while franchisees buy mix, equipment, and support to operate shops. No single customer represented more than 10% of total revenue in the periods disclosed, but large retail accounts remain important to the delivery channel.
Individuals buying doughnuts in Hot Light Theater Shops, Fresh Shops, or online because the brand is tied to freshness and impulse indulgence.
Grocery, club, convenience, and drug stores that buy doughnuts for resale in branded cabinets and merchandising units.
QSR and fast-casual operators that carry Krispy Kreme products to add traffic and dessert offerings.
Domestic and international franchisees that buy mix, equipment, and brand access to operate shops.
Consumers ordering pickup or delivery through Krispy Kreme's own platforms or third-party apps.
Strategy
Krispy Kreme is shifting toward a more franchised, capital-light model while keeping the brand visible through shops, delivery, and digital channels. Management is also focused on expanding internationally with local partners, growing the digital channel, and improving the economics of fresh delivery. These priorities are meant to widen distribution without requiring the company to fund every new location itself.
A more franchised model shifts capital and operating responsibility to partners and should improve scalability.
Digital is the fastest-growing U.S. channel and can raise convenience and order frequency.
Fresh delivery broadens access points and supports brand visibility in high-traffic retail channels.
The brand depends on a consistent hot-off-the-line experience and reliable supply chain execution.
Geography
2025Krispy Kreme operates in 42 countries and reported more than 40 countries in recent filings, with a mix of company-operated and franchised points of access. The U.S. remains the core operating base, while international markets are being refranchised to make the model more capital-light and to shift more systemwide sales to franchisees over time. The company also relies on a concentrated manufacturing and distribution footprint, including doughnut mix production in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and a third-party facility in California.
Share of the revenue the company reports by geography.
Risks
Krispy Kreme faces execution risk from refranchising, international expansion, and the need to keep fresh product quality consistent across a distributed network. The business is also exposed to food safety, consumer preference shifts, cybersecurity, and supply chain concentration because it relies on a limited manufacturing and distribution footprint for key mixes and ingredients. Large retail customers can reduce shelf space or terminate relationships, which would quickly affect fresh delivery volumes.
- Food safety and product contaminationImpact: HighLikelihood: Medium
The business sells fresh food under a strong consumer brand, so any illness or contamination event could quickly hurt demand and reputation.
Exposure: All consumer-facing channels
- Supply chain concentrationImpact: HighLikelihood: Medium
Krispy Kreme is the exclusive or primary supplier of doughnut mixes and key ingredients, with production concentrated in a few facilities.
Exposure - Key customer concentration in fresh deliveryImpact: HighLikelihood: Low
Retail partners are not committed to fixed volumes and can reduce purchases or reallocate shelf space.
Exposure: Fresh delivery channel
- Cybersecurity and IT disruptionImpact: MediumLikelihood: High
Digital ordering, retail operations, and internal controls depend on functioning systems and secure data handling.
Exposure: Digital and enterprise systems
- International and refranchising executionImpact: MediumLikelihood: Medium
The company is changing its operating model across markets, which can create partner, regulatory, and currency complexity.
Exposure: International operations
Accounting
Judgemental itemsAs the company refranchises, more revenue will come from fees recognized over time and royalties tied to franchisee sales.
Impact: Changes the timing and mix of reported revenue
Fiscal 2025 included large non-cash impairments, indicating that prior acquisition and expansion assumptions may not hold.
Impact: Can sharply reduce net income without affecting cash
The shop network relies on leased locations, and sale-leasebacks can affect reported gains and lease liabilities.
Impact: Affects operating expenses, gains, and leverage presentation
Business interruption recoveries related to the 2024 cybersecurity incident affected other income.
Impact: Can distort comparability between periods
The company uses swaps to manage SOFR-linked borrowing costs.
Impact: Affects interest expense and earnings volatility
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Last updated: 24/09/2026