Construction begins on Krispy Kreme’s Fort Collins location

FORT COLLINS — The “hot” light is on in south Fort Collins, at least when it comes to construction of a long-awaited Krispy Kreme doughnut shop.

Spokespersons at neighboring Appliance Factory and Zwei Brewing Co. confirmed that a construction fence was erected Tuesday at 4624 S. Mason St. and that work has begun on what city planning documents say will be a 3,641-square-foot Krispy Kreme outlet in a space that had been occupied until several years ago by a Fazoli’s fast-casual pasta restaurant.

The plan has been in the works for several years, and “we’re excited to get this one finally kicked off,” said Nathaniel Phelps, who is managing the project for Fort Collins-based Dohn Construction. Phelps said the Fazoli’s space will be “gutted out” and 243 square feet will be added “to square up the building.” He projected that Dohn’s work would be completed by the end of the year.

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BizWest had reported in September 2021 that because the building was already a drive-through, neither parking nor landscaping would need to change.

Krispy Kreme Inc. (Nasdaq: DNUT) already has Colorado locations in Colorado Springs, Lone Tree and Thornton. Known for the iconic red neon “Hot” sign in its window that is illuminated when a fresh batch of doughnuts comes out of the kitchen, the chain was giving out two free original-glazed doughnuts on Tuesday in a “Super TWOsday” promotion pegged to the “Super Tuesday” presidential primaries.

The chain was founded in 1937 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, when founder Vernon Rudolph bought a recipe for yeast-raised doughnuts from a French chef in New Orleans. The chain spread throughout the southeastern United States in the 1960s, and was sold to Beatrice Foods Co. in 1976, three years after Rudolph’s death. In 1982, a small group of franchise holders bought Krispy Kreme back from Beatrice and began a nationwide expansion. It moved through bankruptcy, went private in a $1.4 billion buyout by Luxembourg-based JAB Holding Co. in 2016, and completed a new initial public offering in 2020. 

Cypress, California-based WKS Restaurant Group is the franchise holder for the Fort Collins location. Besides Krispy Kreme, it manages brands including Wendy’s, Denny’s and El Pollo Loco.

Attempts to contact WKS and Krispy Kreme media relations weren’t immediately successful.