Krispy Kreme narrowed its third-quarter loss to $13.4 million on Thursday as restructuring moves began lowering overheads.
The deficit narrowed from $20.3 million in the second quarter and $19.4 million reported a year ago.
Adjusted earnings hit $9.9 million when excluding expenses from selling Krispy Kreme Doughnut Japan Co. Ltd. And paring its stake in a western US joint venture with WKS Restaurant Group from 55% to 20%.
Pruning Capital in Asia and Beyond
Krispy Kreme confirmed plans to refranchise select company-owned operations in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Ireland and the UK. The strategy trades direct capital investment for steady franchise fees, reducing balance-sheet exposure in overseas territories where local supply chains and retail leasing costs compress margins.
International division revenue fell 11.9 per cent to $123.5 million during the quarter. US sales dropped 25.6 per cent to $160.9 million, heavily influenced by the closure of roughly 1,400 underperforming American shops during the third quarter of 2025.
By contrast, the company’s market development unit surged 135.3 per cent to $44.4 million. The division captures smaller fresh shops, direct delivery channels and mobile food trucks, formats that demand substantially less capital than traditional factory stores with dedicated production lines.
The Shift to Capital-Light Operations
For quick-service operators across Asia, running corporate-owned production hubs in high-cost metro markets like Tokyo has grown increasingly punitive. Rising import expenses for core ingredients, utility inflation and tight retail labour markets have made master franchisee models far more attractive to multinational head offices.
Local partners absorb local operational risk. They handle storefront rent negotiations, regional distribution logistics and store-level staffing while the parent company collects recurring royalties and brand fees.
Krispy Kreme outlined four restructuring pillars: establishing fresh US and international refranchising channels, prioritising franchise expansion over company capital spending, repairing operational margins and building stable US revenue streams.
We made significant progress on our turnaround in the third quarter
Said chief executive Josh Charlesworth.
Network Footprint and Logistics Overhaul
The restructuring follows an April overhaul in which Krispy Kreme outsourced the bulk of its US logistics operations to third parties, seeking predictable distribution budgets while concentrating factory hubs strictly on manufacturing.
Total global access points reached 15,889 by September 30, up from 15,194 a year earlier. That network includes 6,462 locations in the United States, 4,497 international sites and 4,930 access points managed through market development formats.
Franchise momentum remains central to that footprint growth. During fiscal 2026, the chain secured new franchise development agreements to enter Pakistan, Estonia, Mauritius and the Netherlands.
Full-Year Guidance and Expansion Targets
Krispy Kreme raised its fiscal 2026 full-year revenue guidance to between $1.35 billion and $1.4 billion, up from an earlier projected band of $1.25 billion to $1.35 billion.
Management reiterated targets to add at least 100 new shops worldwide this year. Capital expenditures for the period remain capped at $45 million, keeping spending strictly tied to higher-margin hub-and-spoke rollouts rather than company-owned real estate.