Concord is about to get not just a Dunkin Donuts, but one of the first new store concepts in the country.
Dunkin’ Donuts, burst into the Bay Area to much excitement back in 2016 when it opened its first location in the area in decades, is continuing its expansion with the next location slated to open in Concord this summer.
But the store won’t bear the traditional Dunkin’ Donuts name. When it opens in the shopping center located at 4383 Clayton Road, it will be one of the chain’s new “next generation” concept stores, called simply, Dunkin’.
Matt Cobo, the Dunkin’ Donuts franchisee who has an agreement with the company to open more than a dozen locations in Contra Costa County over the next several years, said the Concord Dunkin’ store will be among the first new concept stores open in the country, coming after the company unveiled the first Dunkin’ location in Quincy, Massachusetts.
The Quincy location, which is the model the Concord store will follow, has features like a tap system serving cold brew coffee and ice tea, as well as espresso machines to make drinks to order. The “next gen” store also includes digital kiosks so guests can order with or without the help of a crew member, according to a Dunkin’ Donuts news release, and an area for mobile pickups so members of the Dunkin’ rewards program can order via a mobile app and pick up coffee faster — much like the Starbucks mobile app and rewards program that has found success.
Cobo said it’s all part of Dunkin’ Donuts’ focus on competing in the beverage space. While its public image has largely been about doughnuts, the chain sells a lot of coffee, he said, and views its competition more in brands like Starbucks than other bakery or restaurant concepts.
An upcoming Dunkin’ store in Pasadena will reportedly also be part of the new concept rollout, making Concord likely the third city to debut the new name and look. The Dunkin’ in Concord will also feature a drive-thru.
Cobo is eyeing locations for new Dunkin’ Donuts across the county. He signed a lease for a drive-through kiosk in Pleasant Hill’s DVC Plaza, on Chilpancingo Parkway, though he said he still needs to go through city and county permitting to open that, and is looking for space in Brentwood, Hercules, Pinole and other locations.
Dunkin’ Donuts, a subsidiary of Massachusetts-based Dunkin’ Brands, Inc., has upward of 12,000 restaurants worldwide and has been expanding in California recently. In the Bay Area, store openings have drawn crowds of people, including East Coast transplants nostalgic for the brand and Californians eager to find out what all the hype is about.
