Over the past few weeks, Dunkin' Brands (DNKN) has announced moves to enter Communist Vietnam's market for coffee houses, and to expand its operations in the highly regulated "People's Republic of California" as well. Today, though, Dunkin' is taking it easy ... in the Big Easy.
On Tuesday, Dunkin' announced it has signed agreements with a pair of franchise groups to develop 11 new restaurants in New Orleans over the next several years.
One franchise group, run by Alaa and Dhiya Esmail, intends to open a Dunkin' Donuts shop in the Big Easy this year, with five more to follow between now and 2016. A second franchisee, BBC Foods LLC, says it will be developing five more Dunkin' restaurants in New Orleans between 2014 and 2018.
In a press release on the agreements, Dunkin' said it still has franchise opportunities in Lake Charles, Lafayette, Alexandria, and Monroe in Louisiana -- and more available in the New Orleans market as well. And to encourage entrepreneurs to take the plunge, Dunkin' adds that it has no minimum unit requirements for issuance of a franchise.
