Stop & Shop Said to Eye Closing Dunkin’ Donuts

QUINCY, Mass. — Stop & Shop here may be closing some or all of the 132 Dunkin’ Donuts locations in its stores and replacing them with Starbucks, according to local reports last week. A spokesman for Stop & Shop, owned by Amsterdam-based Ahold, confirmed that the chain’s leases with Dunkin’ Donuts expire next year but declined to comment further on the reports. An article in the Meriden Record-Journal in Connecticut said Stop & Shop plans to replace Dunkin’ Donuts locations with Starbucks, although it was not clear how many of the locations would be replaced. Stop & Shop’s website lists 132 in-store Dunkin’ Donuts. In a prepared statement, Stephen J. Caldeira, chief global communications and public affairs officer for Dunkin’ Brands, said, “Any reports about our stores located inside Stop & Shop supermarkets are speculative.” Stop & Shop inked a five-year deal with Starbucks in 2006 to develop an unspecified number of in-store cafes.

Read More of Today's Headlines