The epic battle of the big coffee chains continues, as Dunkin' (DNKN) and Starbucks (SBUX) continue to figure out ways to spirit away each other's customers.
Dunkin's last move involved playing up the millennial draw, with savory new toasts such as the Roasted Tomato & Hummus Toast and the Roasted Tomato & Avocado Toast, which will surely convince the young'uns to forsake their savings goals for a fleeting moment of breakfast joy.
It also added Salted Caramel Cold Brew and Signature Latte options to its menu, which longtime Starbucks fans will surely recognize, and might just be tempted to try as well.
It really is impressive how many different ways it has invented to package the two-hit combo of coffee and sugar.
But someone in the Dunkin' ideas meetings took "thinking outside the box" (or, the cup) quite literally when they came up yet another strategic move to engage customers —and it's working.
What's Dunkin's Newest Product?
Dunkin' knows its devotees bow at the altar of sugar, just like Starbucks, the OG when it comes to sugar dealing.
So why not continue down that same path with a sugary delight you can have when you've had enough caffeine for the day to make your brain vibrate? The answer: Jelly beans.
The limited edition Easter candy comes in five flavors, including Hazelnut, French Vanilla, Caramel Latte, Toasted Coconut and Butter Pecan. No Salted Caramel in this run, sadly, although all bets point to that being included if these return to store shelves next year.
The jelly beans are a collaborative effort with Frankford Candy and retail for $3.99. If you feel an overwhelming need to jam them into your mouth ASAP, you can find them everywhere from CVS to Walmart — and of course Frankford Candy's official website, if you can stand to wait 7-10 business days for your coffee-flavored sugar rush.
Dunkin/Frankford Candy
Is This Sweet New Approach Working for Dunkin'?
Think outside the cup jokes aside, Dunkin' has actually been thinking about the candy approach for more than two decades.
It launched three jelly bean-flavored donuts back in 2001 in a collaboration with Jelly Belly, which included a grape jelly-filled doughnut, a watermelon-flavored doughnut and a cotton candy-flavored doughnut.
And this isn't its first time doing a limited-edition jelly bean, either. In fact, the thought has been on someone's mind at Dunkin' for a while.
The coffee company did a limited run collaboration of them for Easter 2021, and according to Frankford Candy they sold out so quickly it was a no-brainer to expand their availability in 2022. Hence, you can now eat your favorite coffee flavors with ease.
Dunkin' continues to recover nicely from its big sales dip in 2020 due to Covid closures, and its current stock price is higher than ever. That proves that its relentless strategy — coffee, sugar, mix in more sugar and top that with sugar — is working.
While some experts have predicted that Dunkin' may not pose any serious competition for Starbucks yet (Starbucks has more than 4000 locations than Dunkin', for example), that isn't stopping Dunkin' for gunning for the Starbucks audience anyway. You can't help but admire its tenacity.
