Doughnut Day 2020

While Christmas, New Year’s and Independence Day get more attention, some of our favorite holidays are those that fly a bit under the radar. From Turkey Wednesday to National Doughnut Day, days that celebrate retail, and seemingly food, are ones that also capture our attention.

So how did National Doughnut Day 2020 perform in an environment still defined so heavily by the pandemic?

Doughnut Day Boosts

Analyzing visits for Dunkin’ Donuts locations from the start of 2018 through June 8th, 2020 shows the power and pull of this ‘holiday’. Visits on June 7th, 2019 were the highest for any day during the measured period, with visits on the equivalent Friday a year prior coming in at a close second. 

2020 Performance Impacted

Unsurprisingly, the 2020 incarnation was heavily limited by the pandemic and the ongoing impact it has made on in-store visits. While visits on National Doughnut Day 2020 were down by over 40% compared to the 2019 equivalent, the day did mark a significant step forward. For the first time since March 14th, visits to Dunkin’ Donuts were above the daily baseline for the period between January 2019 and June 8th, 2020. 

And the brand is clearly in the midst of a recovery. Nationwide visits have been rising steadily every week since mid-April and numbers are rapidly returning to ‘normal’ levels even with many states still in varying degrees of lockdown.

Coffee Crisis?

And while doughnuts may not be the core of its offering, the other US coffee giant is also in the midst of a recovery of its own. Starbucks has seen consistent week-over-week growth as visits pull ever closer to ‘normal’ levels. Saturday, June 6th saw visits that were 7.8% below the daily baseline for the period beginning from January 2019 through June 8th, 2020, the highest day for visits since March 14th. And while this was still down over 24% compared to the equivalent day in 2019, reopenings in core markets like New York and California could provide a critical boost.

Will National Doughnut Day mark a turning point in Dunkin’s post-pandemic recovery? Can Starbucks bounce back  to ‘normalcy’ in June? Visit Placer.ai to find out.