Town & Country Shopping Center at 1900 Route 70 in Lakewood — Courtesy: JLL
By Joshua Burd
A new Krispy Kreme is coming to Ocean County after a franchisee’s lease at a Route 70 shopping center in Lakewood, brokers with JLL announced last week.
According to a news release, the multinational doughnut and coffeehouse chain will occupy 4,000 square feet at the Town & Country Shopping Center. The new factory-style store is set to open this fall inside a former McDonald’s space at 1900 Route 70, offering a drive-through window, a ‘glaze waterfall’ and a conveyor belt where doughnuts are made fresh in front of customers.
JLL Managing Director David Townes and Vice President Alana Friedman represented the tenant, noting that the deal comes nearly 20 years after Krispy Kreme last had a store in Ocean County. R.J. Brunelli & Co. represented the landlord, Steiner Equities.
“We are thrilled to bring this beloved doughnut shop back to the neighborhood after nearly 20 years,” Townes said. “Krispy Kreme is a dynamic addition to Town & Country Shopping Center’s retail experience, which accesses a significant population from its location right off of Route 70.”
In announcing the deal, JLL noted that the Krispy Kreme franchise group is expanding its New Jersey footprint beyond existing stores in Paramus, Springfield, East Rutherford and Jersey City. The brand, meantime, has scaled its business internationally with locations in more than 30 countries and a rapidly growing ecommerce and delivery business.
Town & Country Shopping Center spans 443,600 square feet and has Home Depot and Value City Furniture as its anchors. The 33-year-old property sits just off Route 70 and serves a surrounding population of more than 205,000, with an average of 41,000 vehicles passing the site every day.
