Dunkin' Donuts plans big Minn. presence

Dunkin' Donuts thinks Minnesotans will love its coffee.

The coffee shop chain plans to open between 110 and 120 shops in Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

Peter Turner, a former Minnetonka resident now living in North Carolina, will be part of the ownership group for those shops.

Turner says he and his business partners expect to open 23 shops next year in Minnetonka, Edina, Bloomington and other suburbs south and west of Minneapolis.

"This is a strong brand. The Dunkins have done very well in Chicago. And we'd like to continue that streak in Minneapolis. We feel strongly that Dunkin' Donuts has the best coffee in the world. And I will go up against any competitor," Turner said.

Grant Benson is vice president of franchise sales for Dunkin' Donuts. He says the chain believes it has to have a lot of shops in a market to prosper.

"One of the things that Dunkin' has found over the years is that in order to be really successful and give consumers what they need in a marketplace, it's important for us to have a significant number of locations when we enter a market. We're looking at a far different approach upon this entry into the Twin Cities," Benson said.

Dunkin' Donuts boasts that it is America's leading seller of coffee by the cup, and the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world.

Dunkin' Donuts says it will announce additional franchises for the greater metropolitan area over the next few months.

Dunkin' Donuts has operated a few shops in the Twin Cities in the past. The company says the last one closed about ten years ago.

The company has more than 7,900 restaurants in 30 countries. In 2007, Dunkin' Donuts' sales totaled $5.3 billion.

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