| Type | Wholly owned subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | donut franchises |
| Founded | 1955 in Hartford, Connecticut |
| Headquarters | The Whole Donut Inc. 894 New Britain Avenue Hartford, Connecticut, U.S. Phone: 860-953-3569 |
| Number of locations | 18 (outlets) |
| Products | Doughnuts • Coffee • Bagels • Muffins • Breakfast sandwiches |
| Parent | The Whole Donut Inc. |
The Whole Donut is a Franchise Company of donuts and coffee founded in 1955 in Hartford, Connecticut.
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The Whole Donut was founded in 1955 in Hartford, CT.[1] Throughout the 1960s-1990s expansion was relatively successful for The Whole Donut. In its Prime The Whole Donut operated over 30 locations throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, & Vermont.[2] Today, despite a series of closures throughout the late 1990s, and as recently as 2008; The Whole Donut continues to operate successfully in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. In Connecticut two unique examples of the Whole Donut Exist, The Whole Donut Express, operates within the Giant Grinder in Southington, CT, and offers a smaller selection of products,[3] Connecticut as previously also been home to The Whole Donut/Blimpies combo stores. Many towns where the Whole Donut continues to operate today have multiple locations.
The store layout of a typical Whole Donut store is different from a typical Dunkin Donuts or Tim Hortons. The Whole Donut's individual franchises are quite different from one another, some offer a variety of hot food, such as grinders, and hot dogs, while other locations offer lottery tickets, and even cigarettes. The Whole Donut's primary focus however is Coffee and Baked Goods, Donuts come in almost 40 different varieties, the famous Donut is the Whole Glazed Donut, which fits in with their "Whole Donut" logo. The Whole Donut continues to compete with brands such as Dunkin Donuts with their own new products such as Sweet Tea and Smoothies. Most Whole Donut Locations are freestanding and feature "Quick-Snap" Service Drive Thru Windows, however some are located on street corners, or within pre-existing plazas.
The 1980s were a time of growth for the company and the company saw the opening of new locations through franchisees, At one time the Whole Donut operated over 30 locations across New England, and even had a Louisiana Location at one point.[4]