“Tip-Off & Take-Off: The Rise of AM ‘Grocerant’ Game Fuel During NCAA Bracket Season”

 

When the first whistle blows in the morning during NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, something fascinating happens—not just on the court, but in kitchens, breakrooms, and increasingly, retail foodservice counters across America.

Welcome to the AM Daypart Game Day Revolution, where breakfast meets bracketology, and indulgence becomes a shared social ritual.

 

The Dunk Heard ‘Round the Donut Case

Enter Krispy Kreme with a perfectly timed play: the Bracket Bash Dozen.

This limited-time lineup isn’t just a novelty—it’s a strategic “grocerant” move (that hybrid of grocery + restaurant) designed to capture early-day social eating occasions:

• Basketball Doughnuts: Cream-filled, iced, and drizzled like mini edible courts
• Basketball Net Doughnuts: Chocolate-dipped with vanilla drizzle
• Original Glazed Staples: The MVPs of familiarity and comfort

Add a BOGO-style $2 dozen promotion, and suddenly you’ve got high-perceived value + shareability + immediacy—a trifecta that drives traffic before noon.

 

Food Industry Fast Break: Why AM Matters

Let’s break down the data behind the deliciousness:

• Breakfast is the fastest-evolving daypart in foodservice, with increased demand for portable, indulgent, and shareable items.
• During major sporting events, food consumption shifts earlier—especially for weekday games when fans are at work or working remotely.
• Retailers and QSRs (quick-service restaurants) are leaning into “occasion-based bundling”—think game-themed packs that simplify hosting.

This is where grocerants win: they provide restaurant-quality, ready-to-eat food in a retail setting, ideal for spontaneous celebrations.

 

Grocerant Guru® Insights (AM Daypart Playbook)

1. Morning “Micro-Events” Are the New Tailgate

Early NCAA games create bite-sized social gatherings—coffee + screens + quick treats.
Insight: Winning brands design for low-friction hosting: easy pickup, visual appeal, minimal prep.

 

2. Sweet Is the New Savory at Tip-Off

Forget eggs and toast—permissible indulgence spikes during events.
Insight: Consumers justify sweets (like themed doughnuts) as part of the experience economy, not just breakfast.

 

3. Digital Ordering Fuels Impulse Celebrations

With app-based ordering and promo codes, brands like Krispy Kreme convert last-minute game awareness into instant purchases.
Insight: The AM daypart is increasingly digitally triggered, not routine-driven.

The Bigger Picture: Food as Fandom Fuel

Bracket season isn’t just about buzzer-beaters—it’s about shared rituals, even at 9 a.m. Whether in offices, homes, or hybrid workspaces, fans are building new traditions around food that’s:

• Visual (Instagrammable)
• Shareable (group-friendly formats)
• Accessible (order ahead, pick up fast)

And that’s exactly where grocerants thrive.

Final Bite

The Bracket Bash Dozen isn’t just a product—it’s a case study in daypart disruption. As early games continue to shape consumption habits, expect more brands to lean into AM occasion-based eating.

Because in today’s food culture, the question isn’t “What’s for breakfast?”

It’s: “What are we eating for the game?”

Elevate Your Brand with Expert Insights

For corporate presentations, regional chain strategies, educational forums, or keynote speaking, Steven Johnson, the Grocerant Guru®, delivers actionable insights that fuel success.

With deep experience in restaurant operations, brand positioning, and strategic consulting, Steven provides valuable takeaways that inspire and drive results.

Visit GrocerantGuru.com or FoodserviceSolutions.US Call 1-253-759-7869

Success Clues from McDonald's and Krispy Kreme Partnership

 

Regular readers of this blog know that success does leave clues. Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® ponders what could be next in this top-of-mind branding breakfast daypart partnership between McDonald’s and Krispy Kreme.  Will it drive new electricity into both brands or just one?

1.       Leveraging Brand Recognition: Both McDonald's and Krispy Kreme are globally recognized brands. This partnership would combine their brand power, potentially attracting customers who frequent either establishment and introducing Krispy Kreme to those who haven't tried it yet.

2.       Synergy of Sweet and Savory: McDonald's breakfast menu is known for its savory options. Krispy Kreme's donuts would add a sweet element, catering to a wider customer preference and potentially encouraging combo purchases.

3.       Creating Buzz and Excitement: A limited-edition menu featuring Krispy Kreme donuts at McDonald's would generate excitement and buzz. This could lead to increased customer traffic and media attention.

4.       Offering Unique Menu Items: The partnership could introduce innovative breakfast offerings. Imagine a McGriddle sandwich featuring a Krispy Kreme donut or a Krispy Kreme donut breakfast bowl with fruit and yogurt.

5.       Reaching New Customer Segments: Krispy Kreme has a loyal customer base that might be drawn to McDonald's for breakfast due to the convenience and wider range of breakfast options.

6.       Potential for Upselling: The partnership could encourage upselling. Customers who order a McCafe beverage might be more likely to add a Krispy Kreme donut to their breakfast.

7.       Social Media Potential: This collaboration would be a social media goldmine. Eye-catching donut creations and breakfast deals could be heavily promoted, driving brand engagement and customer interest.

It's important to note that there could also be challenges to consider, such as ensuring quality control and maintaining menu coherence. However, if executed well, a McDonald's and Krispy Kreme partnership has the potential to be a breakfast sales game-changer.

Are you looking for new customers? Do you want to keep your current customers while building new electricity? According to Johnson, “Brand relevance is in part driven with innovation in new food products in combination with new avenues of distribution all of which are the platform for the new electricity.” 

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply and includes such things as fresh foods, developing brands, unique urban clothing, grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food that is portable, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different. 

Considering that these are just some reasons why a McDonald's and Krispy Kreme partnership could be a breakfast sales game-changer. It's important to note that there might also be logistical challenges to consider, but the potential benefits for both brands are undeniable.

Success does leave clues. One clue that time and time again continues to resurface is “the consumer is dynamic not static”.  Regular readers of this blog know that is the common refrain of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Our Grocerant Guru® can help your company edify your brand with relevance.  Call 253-759-7869 for more information. 

Many Meals May Require Mini Pies This Thanksgiving and Krispy Kreme Has Them

Millennials are inviting friends into their home for Thanksgiving Dinner this year, with any luck you will be one of the friends.  In fact, Millennials will have an average of 9.8 people at the table this year, compared to the total average of 7.4, according to IRI’s findings.

Some will have company for several days and that means sharing and enjoying leftovers. One question will there be left over desert?  Not to worry, according to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®; as Krispy Kreme today is introducing all-new mini pie doughnuts for Thanksgiving, enabling fans to share bite-sized thanks with families, friends and co-workers.  You can buy them fresh every day as many as needed.  Now this is personalization and customization. 

So, Krispy Kreme’s Thanksgiving minis make it easy to express your gratitude and bring the season’s most iconic pie flavors to life in delicious doughnut form:  

• mini Pecan Pie Doughnut: a mini Original Glazed doughnut topped with a gooey butter tart filling, chopped pecans and snickerdoodle cookie pieces. 

• mini Pumpkin Pie Doughnut: a mini doughnut with pumpkin pie filling, dipped in pumpkin pie spiced icing, and topped with snickerdoodle cookie pieces and a dollop of KREME™. 

• mini Lemon Kreme Pie Doughnut: a mini doughnut with lemon filling, dipped in icing, and topped with a dollop of KREME™ and a dusting of powdered sugar. 

• mini Dutch Apple Pie Doughnut: a mini doughnut with apple filling, dipped in caramel-flavored icing, and topped with cinnamon, snickerdoodle cookie pieces and a drizzle of caramel-flavored icing. 

 Krispy Kreme’s new mini pie doughnuts are available in 16-count boxes beginning Nov. 7 for a limited time at participating shops across the U.S. 

Dave Skena, Global Chief Brand Officer for Krispy Kreme, stated, “We show our thanks in many ways and there’s no better environment to share gratitude than by coming together over food, including sharing something sweet,” ... “In the tradition of favorite Thanksgiving desserts, our new mini pie doughnuts are the perfect bite-sized way to show your gratitude.”    

It gets even better as Krispy Kreme also is sweetening Friendsgiving gatherings, making it easier to show friends and co-workers “mini thanks” by offering guests a $1 Original Glazed dozen Nov. 18 and 19 with the purchase of a Thanksgiving mini pies 16-count box in shop, at drive-thru or online. 

Don’t over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit us on our social media sites by clicking the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Coffee and Breakfast Treats McDonald’s Focusing on AM Daypart

 

Can you believe that McDonald’s is expanding another Co-Branded product?  That’s right after testing McPlant with Beyond Meat they are now testing selling Krispy Kreme doughnuts.  The morning daypart once owned by McDonald’s has become the envy of most every other food retailer from Convenience Stores, Fast Food Taco Chains, Burger Outlets, even Wendy’s is back in the breakfast game.

According to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® it will be very interesting to see if branded doughnuts drive an increase in check average, return visits during the AM Daypart, and incremental sales as in a dozen at a time?

McDonald’s in Louisville, Ky., said that it will start selling three varieties of Krispy Kreme doughnuts at nine locations in the market in what is described as a limited-time operations test of the concept.

In a page out of the Krispy Kreme operating playbook, McDonald’s will not be making the doughnuts. Rather, Krispy Kreme will make the doughnuts at one of its large doughnut-making shops and will deliver them daily to those locations.

McDonald’s will sell Krispy Kreme’s Original Glazed, a Chocolate Iced with Sprinkles and a Raspberry Filled Doughnut. The doughnuts will be available all day starting Oct. 26.

The small-scale test will help McDonald’s understand how offering bakery items from a company like Krispy Kreme would impact operations. The nine locations are all company-operated units.

The center point of the test will be on the operating impact of the sale. So, it’s uncertain how revenues would be split between McDonald’s and Krispy Kreme. It’s also not certain how this would impact franchise restaurants.

It’s also a rare move. McDonald’s generally does not sell other brands’ items inside its restaurants outside of beverages yet it does that. Now for instance, its McPlant burger does not feature the name of Beyond Meat, even as its competitors have branded their plant-based burgers with one of the fake-meat making companies’ names, but if they thought it would help.  Might they?

This is all about the AM Daypart the McDonald’s once owned.  McDonald’s has been pushing more into sweet treats that make natural companions to its coffee beverages. Regular readers of this blog know that they added an apple fritter, blueberry muffin and cinnamon roll to its menu in 2020. However, let’s face it the product was average at best.  These doughnuts will be much fresher.

This test could prove a much bigger for Krispy Kreme, which is eager to expand the availability of its doughnuts in the U.S.

Regular readers of this blog know that Krispy Kreme operates a hub-and-spoke model where it makes doughnuts at 245 large retail shops in the U.S. and Canada. It uses those shops to supply more than 5,500 kiosks inside grocers and other retailers, which it calls “DFD Doors,” or delivered fresh daily doors.

Yes, Krispy Kreme is hoping those doors can anchor a network of more than 10,000 points of access in the U.S. The company is also hoping to have 50,000 points of access globally. So, McDonald’s, with more than 13,000 U.S. locations and 40,000 global restaurants, could certainly help them get there.

What are you testing?  How will you drive new customer into your restaurants?

Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideas look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how our Grocerant Guru® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit: us on our social media sites by clicking one of the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

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Krispy Kreme is Offering $1 Dozen Deal Today

Success does leave clues, and Krispy Kreme has picked up, shares, and learned a lot about its customers in it’s first 84 years according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

So. to Celebrate their 84th Birthday, Krispy Kreme is edifying its relationship with its customers the best way they know how.  That is with an interactive participatory branded message. That message is a customer favorite, a BOGO, (Buy One Get One); the BOGO deal is available on Friday, July 16.

If you are working in an office, Krispy Kreme is celebrating its 84th birthday treating fans with an offer of fun, it’s turning birthday to BirthYAY, consider stopping on your way to the office and share a treat.

Today, July 16, Krispy Kreme fans can receive a $1 BirthYAY dozen – an Original Glazed dozen featuring a special strawberry iced BirthYAY sprinkle doughnut – with the purchase of any dozen at participating shops across the U.S. 

Dave Skena, Chief Marketing Officer for Krispy Kreme stated, “For our 84th birthday, we’re giving our amazing fans a special doughnut and a great deal to celebrate with delicious, melt in-your-mouth doughnuts,”.   

Don’t delay, as today is the day to share how you’re celebrating Krispy Kreme’s birthday this year with a $1 BirthYAY Dozen by using #KrispyKreme and tagging @krispykreme on social media. The BirthYAY Dozen offer is available in stores and for online ordering with promocode: BIRTHYAY.

Looking for success clues of your own? Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced food marketing and business development ideations. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities, technology, or a new menu product segment.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit us on our social media sites by clicking one of the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter 

Krispy Kreme Expands Partnership to Deliver a Frenzy of Favorite Flavor

Success does leave clues and branded partnerships help expand your brands reach while edifying your relationships with consumers according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.

Yes, Krispy Kreme and Reese's have partnered up once again to expand each other’s brand reach.  This time Krispy Kreme debuted two original filled doughnuts stuffed with peanut butter and chocolate Kreme. If you like Reese’s Peanut Butter cups you will like these donuts. These new donut flavors will drive incremental relevance and a new electricity for customer reinforcing fresh food that is familiar yet different with a twist of freshness.

Filled Peanut Butter Lovers Doughnut and the Reese's Original Filled Chocolate Lovers Doughnut are both chocolate glazed. Here's where they differ though: The chocolate is stuffed with a Reese's peanut butter creme, dipped in chocolate fudge icing, and then topped with a PB icing drizzle. Contrastingly, the Peanut Butter Lovers is stuffed with a chocolate peanut butter creme, dipped in peanut butter icing, and topped chocolate. How are you edifying your brand?  Are you driving new electricity?

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply chain and includes such things as fresh foods, plant based  foods,  sampling, toy’s, beer, developing brands, unique urban clothing, grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All food and beverage retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food and beverages that are portable, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different.  Does your retail path forward look more like yesterday than tomorrow?  Why?

Are you looking for a new partnership to drive sales? Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing tactics look more like yesterday that tomorrow?  Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success does leave clues and we just may have the clue you need to propel your continued success.