Krispy Kreme franchise owner fills in holes of rumors regarding location, employment

Rumors and speculation about a Krispy Kreme location in Cape Girardeau have long circulated, and as of Tuesday morning, the City of Cape Girardeau has a set of building plans under review.

Franchisee Eric Schneider had confirmed to the Southeast Missourian in December he would be opening a location in Town Plaza, and, he said Tuesday, he�s looking forward to being open in Cape Girardeau.

�There�s been a lot of excitement, and I�ve made a lot of great connections in the city,� Schneider said. �John Mehner with the chamber of commerce has been a tremendous asset in helping me make connections, find property and go through everything we needed to do with the city to get the building plans approved.�

Schneider said every time he walks through the city, people stop him and ask whether it�s really true Krispy Kreme is coming to Cape Girardeau.

�They�ll ask, �Is it really happening?� Now, finally, I can say �yes,�� Schneider said.

As long as everything goes to plan, �and I anticipate it will, I would love to see some groundbreaking next week,� Schneider said. �We fully anticipate being open for business on Dec. 18.�

Schneider said he�ll be looking for �a host of employees,� from general manager and associate managers to shift workers � approximately 75 people all told.

�I�m happy to be coming to Southeast Missouri, not only Cape Girardeau, but Jackson, Sikeston, everywhere else,� Schneider said. �We�re a grassroots organization, and I believe in community involvement and giving back. That�s what I and Krispy Kreme are all about, and I look forward to building partnerships.�

Tom Kelsey of Lormiont Commercial Real Estate confirmed the real-estate transaction was handled by his company.

Plan reviewer and site inspector for the city Todd Richbourg confirmed Tuesday morning he has received building plans and was reviewing them.

The stormwater plan portion is complete, Richbourg said, and early Tuesday, he was reviewing the design portion.

Richbourg will ensure the plans adhere to the city�s building codes, then send them back to the design professional for review on that end, he said.

The Krispy Kreme building will be a free-standing structure, Richbourg confirmed, and will be built on the current site of Ty�s Summer Sno, between El Torero and the former Sears building, now home to Slumberland Furniture, Here Today and Midori Japanese Cuisine.

Richbourg said he was not aware of relocation plans for Ty�s, �but it will have to go somewhere.�

Schneider is also franchisee of Krispy Kreme in Marion, Illinois, about 44 miles from Cape Girardeau.

mniederkorn@semissourian.com

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