Does America Run on Dunkins?

12/6/2022

• Data was sourced from the All Portal, and the ArcGIS website. *

Whenever we leave class, the first thing our tired selves want is caffeine. Picking between Starbucks and Dunkin donuts is a hard choice, but one we have to ask ourselves on a day-to-day basis as college students.

The question we are trying to ask is does the population density/ median income level have any correlation to the number of stores in each respective chain?

• Dunkin donuts is a large chain bakery and coffee shop serving almost 3 million customers daily (1). It has a wide variety of food and drink options which makes it a convenient way to get one's caffeine intake.

The chain started in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1950, and rebranded as Dunkin in January 2019

The Dunkin mission is "Everything we do is about you. From chefs who create exciting new flavors to crew members who know exactly how you want your drink—we prioritize what you need to get you on your way. We strive to keep you at your best, and we remain loyal to you, your tastes, and your time. That’s what America runs on."

We have more than 11,300 Dunkin' worldwide, 8,500 restaurants in 41 states, and over 3,200 international restaurants. (7)

Starbucks is a coffee shop chain that first opened in 1971 in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks has an extensive variety of beverages to choose from, as well as select food options.

The chain then began to expand to Chicago, Washington D.C., California, and New York by 1996. By 1999 Starbucks had grown internationally by having locations in China and Europe.

The Starbucks mission is to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.

Today Starbucks has 34,630 locations worldwide. (8)

On average Dunkin' has lower prices than Starbucks, so we wanted to see if income correlated with the pricing.

Which state has the most Dunkin Donuts locations, and which state has the most Starbucks location?

*New York for Dunkin, and California for Starbucks!*

Over all it is apparent that America does in fact not run on Dunkin. The theory that the median household income has an effect on which chain is more abundant in an area was not supported by the maps we have created.

Instead, it appears that the two chains are in an East Coast, West Coast battle over the United States. Both chains have dense populations of locations respective to where they first originated.

It also looks like Dunkin has more locations per people in an area than Starbucks does.

Even though Dunkin has a hold on New England and us, it doesn't seem for the rest of America

• There were many hardships that came to light when seeing if America really truly ran on Dunkins. First the data I got from All-Portal would crash sometimes suddenly and without warning or take a toll on my computer waiting a bit for the huge dataset to load. Also, when I try to geoprocess this data, it would often give error, as the file format was wrong. Working around these issues was a hassle.

• Improvements could definitely be made with all the maps that were produced. The first map looks a bit "busy", so maybe better symbology instead of filling out each dominant county would be better idea instead. In the second map, color seemed a little washed out and hard to read as the data I collected was a little vague. Better datasets with a much more detailed color scheme and numerological data would bring the map up to a new level.
• The third map combining the two has the same issues as the first two, it might seem a tad busy and maybe not fully convey the message across. Better symbology like maybe little logos instead would be a better way at showing store locations.

Where was the first Dunkin Donuts?

Where was the first Starbucks?