Kirkwood Mayor Art McDonnell to Join Grand Opening Festivities Supporting The BackStoppers

KIRKWOOD, Mo., March 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Dunkin' Donuts, founded in 1950, is celebrating 60 years of delicious coffee, donuts and baked goods, and the brand is inviting customers in Kirkwood to join the party with the March 11 grand opening of its new restaurant at 1210 South Kirkwood Road in Kirkwood.

The doors to the restaurant will open to the public at 5:00 a.m., and the first 100 guests will receive $2.00 Dunkin' Donuts gift cards.  To commemorate the grand opening and Dunkin' Donuts' 60th BirthDDay, the restaurant is hosting a birthday celebration featuring a 9:30 a.m. ribbon cutting with Mayor McDonnell and the official kick-off of the "Dunkin' Donuts Beverages for BackStoppers" drive at the new restaurant.  As part of the opening celebration, franchisee Michael Geller will donate 50 percent of all first-week beverage sales, up to $2,500, to The BackStoppers, which provides support and financial assistance to families of fallen police officers and firefighters.  In addition, from 7:00 a.m. through 9:00 a.m., Al Hofer from WARH-FM, "The Arch," will broadcast live from the store.  

Geller, who earned post-graduate degrees from Washington University in St. Louis, said he's long wanted to return to the St. Louis area and bring the Dunkin' Donuts brand with him.  "My mother and aunt have operated Dunkin' Donuts in New Jersey for more than 20 years.  I grew up with the brand, had a passion for the business, always loved the products and have always felt at home here in St. Louis," he said.

The new Kirkwood location, which will be open 5:00 a.m. – 10 p.m. with a 24-hour drive-thru window, seven days a week, is complemented by a new menu that will include dozens of varieties of donuts, baked goods and beverages.

Dunkin' Donuts is the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world, selling more than one billion cups of hot and iced coffee and more than 900 million donuts and Munchkins donut hole treats every year. Today, there are more than 6,500 restaurants in 35 U.S. states and the District of Columbia and more than 2,600 international restaurants in 29 countries.

SOURCE Dunkin' Donuts