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For those craving cake doughnuts over Southern glazed, your wait will soon be over.

The first in a new round of Dunkin’ Donuts franchise restaurants in the area will open either Aug. 11 or Aug. 18, said Bikram “Ricky” Matani, one of the five partners in the franchisee group.

The first store is at 337 W. Wendover Ave., beside a Kangaroo convenience store.

The partners have signed up to bring 15 Dunkin’ Donuts locations to the area over the next six years. Three more are set to open this year. Two, at 2718 S. Main St. in High Point and 3602 E. Wendover Ave., are projected to open in September or October, Matani said. The East Wendover Avenue location will have a drive-through.

The last location, planned for 811 S. Holden Road, is contingent upon a rezoning request before city government.

Despite being just a city away from the corporate headquarters of rival Krispy Kreme, Matani is confident Dunkin’ Donuts will thrive in the Triad.

“We noticed a lot of coffee companies coming into the market and thought this would promote healthy competition,” he said.

Once up and running, the four locations are expected to have more than 100 employees .

City’s Starbucks stay put

There’s no lack of coffee competition in the Gate City, and at least for now in the Starbucks world, it’ll stay that way.

While the coffee giant is closing 600 stores nationwide, no impacted locations are in Greensboro.

Winston-Salem wasn’t as lucky. The Starbucks at 4912 Country Club Road is on the list of affected stores, as are five stores in Charlotte.

Baby boutique on State St.

Peaceful Beginnings, a boutique that caters to parents and babies, will mark its grand opening Aug. 8 and 9 .

The store, at 208 State St. , offers a variety of baby gear, such as cloth diapers, carriers and wooden educational toys, including the popular Moby and ERGO baby carriers. The store is also offering a gift registry for parents.

After decades in the nursing profession, store co-owner Linda Donovan is familiar with babies. She cultivated a passion for working with new mothers as a certified lactation consultant. She owns the business with her daughter, Heather Donovan Hogan , who is a nurse and licensed massage and bodywork therapist like Donovan.
Donovan started offering lactation consultations and other services in her home last summer after realizing she was burned out from doing hospital work. By January, she had set up the boutique in her basement. She moved the business to its State Street home in June.

Later this year, Eco Everyday, a boutique selling environmentally conscious general-store items, will join the space.

Peaceful Beginnings is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday , from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays and by appointment.

Another jewelry option

The Jared jewelry store chain is building its first Triad location on West Wendover Avenue. No information was available on when the store may open or how big it will be.

Jared’s other North Carolina locations are in Cary, Durham, Raleigh, Charlotte, Concord and Pineville.

Savvy Shoppers unite at the Bargain Blog at news-record.com. Do you have a retail news or shopping tips for Savvy Shopper? Contact Lanita Withers at 373-7071
or email lanita.withers@news-record.com.