Krispy Kreme Uses Doughnut Theater To Pull In Times Square Crowds In NYC

September 18, 2020 by Dave Haynes

This is the Doughnut Theater Experience – the big Wow Factor feature of a Krispy Kreme flagship store in Times Square in New York.

David Title and his crew of artists, coders and techs at Bravo Media spent about a year developing a set of visuals for the store, which just opened this week.

There’s a big, wraparound corner LED on the facade, but the real show is inside – using projection-mapping and what looks to be gesture-sensing cameras on a feature wall.

Here’s a video of one content sequence:

The PR from the QSR chain says:

Krispy Kreme’s first global flagship shop will showcase the brand in the most iconic city in the world, bringing joy to New Yorkers and everyone from around the world who visits. The one-of-a-kind, 4,500 square-foot shop offers a deliciously immersive and interactive doughnut experience, including:

• The world’s largest Hot Light
• An iconic doughnut-making theater
• The largest and iconic Glazed Waterfall for spectators to watch doughnuts run through
  Stadium?style seating inside a giant Krispy Kreme dozens box
• A 24-hour street-side pickup window where people can get doughnuts as they walk by
  Merchandise specific to New York City and Times Square to commemorate the experience
• A special edition and commemorative “Big Apple” Doughnut exclusively at the Times Square Shop

Here are more details from Krispy Kreme’s Todd Hoffman, who led the project:

Interior:

• Digital menu boards … Stratacache for technology and CMS; SagePath for content. 3 sets of 3 with two 10 second takeovers
• Digital columns (2) … Technology/install by Electrosonic; content from SagePath out of Atlanta
• Doughnut Theatre … technology/install by Electrosonic; creative by Bravo – 5 separate ~:35 shows
• Tables with embedded displays … tech by Electrosonic; tables by Arsenal; creative by Bravo
• Programmable Lighting throughout shop … light design by Traxon/Osram; syncs with Bravo’s Doughnut Theatre shows
• In-store Audio … install by Electrosonic, background music by PlayNetworks; also syncs with Bravo’s Doughnut Theatre shows.

Exterior:

• 15-foot rotating hot light … Anchor Sign (our largest ever – 15 feet, 8,000 pounds
• Main digital billboard … Technology from Daktronics; content management by Clear Channel; content creation by Fleishman Hillard
• LED “conveyer” ribbon … technology/install by Electrosonic; content creation by Fleishman Hillard; CMS by Stratacache

Also, the lead architecture firm was Chute Gerdeman out of Columbus, Ohio.

The store had been scheduled for May but was pushed back due to you know what.

Bravo does interesting work. Here’s a podcast I did with David Title from last year …