Providence Counts assembles facts and figures from a variety of sources to illustrate different aspects of the city. This week we’re focusing on a surprising Providence superpower: donuts.
While regional chains dominate in the Midwest, and local independent brands are prevalent in the Western part of the US, here in the Northeast, the donut business is dominated by Dunkin’, whose original store was in Quincy, Massachusetts, founded in 1948. They were the first to franchise, moving into suburbs, and the first to innovate their flavors (based on the successful experience of Howard Johnson which had 28 flavors of ice cream).
And now, here’s where we grab the headline: The Providence metro area has the most donut shops/person in the whole country! (Providence has 19 percent more donut shops per person than Boston, and nearly 10 times more per person than Minneapolis)
This data was compiled by the Washington Post.
