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Gotta Glaze 'Em All
Krispy Kreme's free doughnut giveaways are crowd favorites – but the sweetest visits, of course, are the ones customers pay for. So when Pikachu and friends landed in shops this August, we dug into a year of promotion-day visit data to see just how much punch a for-purchase promotion could pack.
Pikachu Pulls His Weight, No Freebie Required
Krispy Kreme runs one of the most reliable traffic plays in the QSR world: pick a day, give away an Original Glazed, and watch the lines form. The chart below compares visits on top promotion days over the past 12 months to the chain's average for the same weekday, and the freebies predictably rule the leaderboard – St. Patrick's Day (+152.0%), National Doughnut Day (+143.8%), and Veterans Day (+107.9%) all more than doubled a typical day's visits.
But Pokémon proved the chain can draw a crowd at full price. On August 18th, Krispy Kreme launched its limited-time Pokémon Collection – six doughnuts starring Pikachu, Charmander, and friends, celebrating the franchise's 30th anniversary – and visits jumped 45.7% above a typical Tuesday. Pre-orders sold out almost immediately, and resellers were soon listing empty boxes on eBay for up to $100.
The sequel came Saturday, August 22nd, when fans in Pokémon attire could claim a free Original Glazed. Visits ran 19.9% above a typical Saturday – a solid bump on the chain's busiest day of the week.
A Sweet Takeaway
For a brand in the middle of a turnaround, the lesson is sweet: Even without giving away free doughnuts, Krispy Kreme can still pack the house.
For more data-driven QSR insights, follow Placer.ai/anchor.
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