NAACP Announces Partnership With Dunkin' Brands

BALTIMORE, July 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) announced today its partnership with Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: DNKN), the parent company of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, to create a Diversity Franchising Initiative to increase the number of African-American owned franchise businesses in the United States. Through the partnership, Dunkin' Brands and the NAACP will collaborate to offer people of color in-depth franchising education and training as well as assistance in overcoming the financial challenges related to becoming a franchise owner. The partnership was announced at the NAACP's 105^th Annual Convention in Las Vegas.

"Franchising can be a powerful economic tool that further enables the African-American community and others to realize the American dream of business ownership," said Cornell William Brooks, President and CEO of the NAACP. "We are excited to announce this unique partnership with Dunkin' Brands and to improve opportunities for people of color in the franchising sector because of the substantial impact these agreements have on empowering and employing people of color."

"The Dunkin' Brands Diversity in Franchising Initiative will provide education, networking opportunities and information on critical topics including access to capital," said Dedrick Muhammad, senior director of the NAACP Economic Department. "Ultimately, we hope this program helps to increase the number of African-American franchise business owners in the U.S in both the short and long term."

This initiative is a part of Dunkin' Brands' ongoing efforts to provide resources to help qualified franchisee candidates overcome barriers associated with financing, including providing guidance on business plan development, facilitating access to capital, and forging relationships with local community lenders.

"We are proud to launch this partnership with the NAACP. Working together, our goal is to increase African American participation in the franchise industry, not just with Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, but across a wide spectrum of franchising concepts available in the marketplace," said Grant Benson, CFE, vice president of global franchising and business development, Dunkin' Brands. "Additionally, we believe this partnership will enable Dunkin' Brands to build a larger, more diverse pool of franchise candidates, accelerate our expansion in new and existing markets, and continue to build customer loyalty for our two brands across the country."        

About the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Economic Department

The NAACP Economic Department was relaunched in 2011 and currently has four program areas: Fair Lending, Economic Education, Opportunity and Diversity, and Community Economic Development. The NAACP Economic Department is dedicated to ensuring that "every person will have equal opportunity to achieve economic success, sustainability, and financial security." Learn more about the NAACP Economic work here.

About National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest nonpartisan civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities. You can read more about the NAACP's work and our five "Game Changer" issue areas here.

About Dunkin' Brands
With more than 18,000 points of distribution in nearly 60 countries worldwide, Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: DNKN) is one of the world's leading franchisors of quick service restaurants (QSR) serving hot and cold coffee and baked goods, as well as hard-serve ice cream. At the end of fiscal 2013, Dunkin' Brands' nearly 100 percent franchised business model included nearly 11,000 Dunkin' Donuts restaurants and 7,300 Baskin-Robbins restaurants. Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. is headquartered in Canton, Mass.

Contact:
Rachel Tabacnic
Fish Consulting
[e-mail]
954-893-9150

Nicole Kenney
NAACP
[e-mail] 
410-336-4559

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SOURCE National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

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