Coffee Time Donuts

What Coffee Time Donuts does

Coffee Time is an all-Canadian quick-service restaurant and coffee chain founded in 1982 in Bolton, Ontario, and now headquartered at 77 Progress Avenue, Toronto, under the parent entity Chairman's Brand Corporation. The company operates a franchise model in which independent franchisees run retail locations under the Coffee Time brand, with the corporate franchisor providing a full-stack support system: site selection, a 4-week training academy, equipment and architectural packages, and ongoing operational support. Coffee Time monetizes through two streams: ongoing transaction-based royalties (5% of weekly sales) plus advertising contributions (3% of weekly sales), and one-time franchise development fees of approximately $590,700 per location (including a $25,000 initial franchise fee and $5,000 training fee), generating roughly $30,000 in upfront revenue per new franchisee.

The company's product portfolio centers on coffee and baked goods, anchored by donuts, classic and specialty bagels, muffins, fritters, and Danish, and extends into all-day breakfast sandwiches (Brekwiches, breakfast bagels), lunch sandwiches, wraps, soups, chili, and savouries. Supporting offers include seasonal limited-time menus (Maple Eh!, Pumpkin Trio, Summer Coolers, Spring Wraps), gift cards through the Givex platform, online ordering via a proprietary mobile app and Uber Eats delivery, and a corporate website used for promotions, location lookup, and franchise recruitment. The company emphasizes an all-Canadian sourcing philosophy, fresh onsite baking, freshly cracked eggs in breakfast items, and a transition to cage-free eggs.

The customer base is dual-segment: individual consumers in Ontario and international markets seeking quick, value-priced coffee and breakfast/lunch options (primary segment, with target markets in Toronto, Mississauga, and Peterborough), and prospective franchisees (secondary segment) seeking a turnkey operating system with brand recognition, training, and procurement support. Distribution is exclusively through franchise-operated retail locations plus the digital channels noted above. No proprietary technology stack is disclosed beyond standard web, mobile app, gift card, and third-party delivery integrations.

Name

Coffee Time Donuts

Legal name

Chairman’s Brand Corporation

Website

https://coffeetime.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Coffee Time is an all-Canadian quick-service coffee and baked goods franchise founded in 1982, headquartered in Toronto, serving individual consumers with coffee, donuts, all-day breakfast, and sandwiches through franchise-operated retail locations across Ontario and international markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Quick-Service Coffee and Donut Restaurants

NAICS

Limited-Service Restaurants (722513)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Breakfast & Coffee QSR (THAFAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Donut Shops (THAFAGAE), Coffee Chains & Franchise Cafes (THAFADAB)

Keywords

• Quick service restaurants
• Coffee and donuts
• Franchise restaurants
• All-day breakfast
• Baked goods retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Retail food and beverage sales: Revenue generated from direct sales of coffee, baked goods, breakfast items, sandwiches, and seasonal promotions at franchise locations. Franchisees pay weekly royalty fees and advertising contributions.
2. Franchise fees: Initial franchise fee of $25,000 plus training fee of $5,000 for new franchisees. Royalty fee of 5% of all sales per week, plus advertising fee of 3% per week.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Coffee Time Donuts is a Canadian quick-service coffee and donut franchise chain operating through independently owned franchise locations. It sells hot and cold coffee beverages, fresh donuts and baked goods, all-day breakfast sandwiches made with freshly cracked eggs, lunch sandwiches, wraps, soups, and seasonal limited-time menu items. Revenue is generated through consumer retail sales and through licensing the franchise system to new franchisees.

Product overview

Coffee Time is an all-Canadian quick-service restaurant chain offering a unified product portfolio centered on coffee and baked goods, with additional offerings in all-day breakfast, lunch sandwiches, and seasonal limited-time items. The core product line consists of hot and cold beverages (Hot Drinks, Summer Coolers, Over Ice Drinks, Smoothies & Blended Chillas), bakery items (Donuts, Bakery goods, Bagels), and prepared foods (Breakfast Bagels, Brekwiches, Classic Sandwiches, Wraps, Savouries, Soups, Chili). Supporting services include Gift Cards, a Mobile App for online ordering, and a Franchise Program for business expansion. The company operates as a single unified brand with no modular architecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hot Drinks Hot beverages including coffee, flavoured cappuccino, tea, and hot chocolate available in multiple sizes for in-store and takeout customers.
• Summer Coolers Seasonal iced lemonade and cooler lineup including Dragon Fruit Lemonade, Passion Fruit Lemonade, and Orange Creamsicle Lemonade, sold in small, medium, and large sizes.
• Over Ice Drinks Iced beverages including raspberry blackcurrant tea, iced coffee, cold brew, iced cappuccino, and orange creamsicle.
• Smoothies and Blended Chillas Blended frozen beverages including Salted Caramel Chilla, Strawberry Banana Smoothie, Mango Smoothie, Cafe Mocha Chilla, and Coffee Chilla.
• Donuts Fresh donuts including Classic Donuts, Specialty Donuts, Fritters, and Coffee Bits in various flavors, prepared on-site at franchise locations.
• Bakery Assorted baked goods including muffins, biscuits, butter cookies, oatmeal bars, danish, and croissants.
• Bagels Traditional and specialty bagels, served plain or with cream cheese and various toppings.
• Breakfast Bagels Breakfast bagels made with freshly cracked eggs, including Ultimate Breakfast Bagel, Sausage Egg & Cheese, Bacon Egg & Cheese, Western, and Steak Egg & Cheese varieties.
• Brekwiches Breakfast sandwiches using freshly cracked eggs, including Western, Bacon Egg & Cheese, Sausage Egg & Cheese, Steak Egg & Cheese, and Egg & Cheese varieties.
• Classic Sandwiches Lunch sandwiches including Deli Style Egg Salad, Gourmet Tuna Salad, Philly Steak & Cheese, Classic BLT, Honey Ham n Swiss, Tuscan Turkey Club, BBQ Chicken n Bacon, Coffee Time Special, and Grilled Cheese.
• Spring Wraps Limited-time wraps including Ultimate Chipotle Breakfast Wrap ($7.99), Queso Steak Wrap ($9.99), and Nashville Chicken Wrap ($9.99).
• Savouries Savory pastries and snacks including Jamaican Style Patty, Stuffed Patty, Samosa, Feta Cheese Pie, Spinach & Cheese Pie, and Sausage Roll.
• Soups and Chili Daily soups and hearty chili available with combo options including a bagel or donut.
• Fall Pumpkin Trio Seasonal fall offering including Pumpkin Pie Cold Coffee (from $3.79), Pumpkin Spice Muffin ($2.79), and Pumpkin Spice Sugar Donut ($1.69).
• Maple Eh! Limited-Time Menu Canadian-themed limited-time menu featuring Maple Breakfast Donut Sandwich, Canadian Bacon Sandwich on Sourdough, Maple Lemonade, and Maple Cream Filled Donut.
• Winter Limited-Time Offer Winter menu including Three Cheese Grilled Sandwich with Bacon ($7.99), White Chocolate Caramel Cappuccino, Spicy Chicken Nacho Soup ($5.99), and Caramel Swirl Muffin ($2.59).
• Gift Cards Prepaid gift cards usable at Coffee Time franchise locations, available for purchase online with occasional value-bonus promotions such as the Stocking Stuffer Special (buy $25, receive $30 value).
• Coffee Time Mobile App Mobile application for online ordering with promotional code PICKUP10 offering 10% off pickup orders, enabling direct consumer engagement with the brand.
• Coffee Time Franchise Program Franchise opportunity with a 7-step process to ownership, providing site selection, 4-week training, equipment sourcing, and ongoing operational and marketing support. Initial franchise fee $25,000 plus $5,000 training fee, total development cost approximately $590,700 (or $624,500 with drive-thru), 5% weekly royalty, and 3% weekly advertising fee.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Subway: Subway is the world's largest franchise QSR and a direct comparison point for Coffee Time's franchise unit economics, royalty structure, and franchisee development costs. Both rely heavily on franchise conversion with significantly lower total development investment than Coffee Time's ~$590K buildout.
• Mary Brown's Chicken: Mary Brown's is a Canadian-founded franchise QSR brand with national footprint and similar franchise-driven expansion playbook. While menu differs (chicken-focused), both operate as Canadian-owned franchise systems with comparable corporate headcount profiles.
• A&W Canada: A&W Canada is a large Canadian franchise QSR chain offering breakfast and coffee among broader burger and chicken menus. Both are Canadian-founded franchise brands operating 24-hour-friendly locations with morning daypart as a key traffic driver.
• Starbucks: Starbucks is the dominant global coffee chain and a broad incumbent competitor in every Canadian market Coffee Time operates in. Both serve coffee, breakfast sandwiches, and grab-and-go food through company-owned and licensed locations, though Starbucks skews more premium and café-oriented.

Direct peers

• Tim Hortons: Tim Hortons is Canada's largest coffee and donut QSR chain and Coffee Time's most direct domestic competitor. Both sell coffee, donuts, breakfast sandwiches, and lunch items through franchise-operated Canadian locations, with overlapping target consumers and similar daypart positioning.
• Second Cup: Second Cup is a Canadian specialty coffee chain historically rooted in franchised cafes. Although more café-oriented than Coffee Time today, both share Canadian heritage, franchise-driven unit growth, and overlapping coffee-shop trade areas, making them relevant competitive peers.
• Dunkin': Dunkin' is a major U.S.-headquartered coffee and donut QSR brand with franchise-driven North American expansion. It competes with Coffee Time on the same core use cases — drive-thru coffee, donuts, breakfast sandwiches, and value-oriented daily consumption.
• Country Style: Country Style is a Canadian coffee and donut QSR chain with a similar Ontario-rooted franchise model. Both target commuters seeking grab-and-go coffee, donuts, and breakfast sandwiches at competitive price points, and both rely on franchised retail locations with brand-standardized menus.
• Krispy Kreme: Krispy Kreme is a global donut and coffee chain that directly competes with Coffee Time on the donut side of the menu. Both emphasize fresh, in-store-prepared donuts alongside brewed coffee, and both operate franchise and company-owned retail points-of-sale in similar trade areas.
• Mr. Donut: Mr. Donut is a North American donut and coffee chain with franchised locations, sharing Coffee Time's core menu focus on donuts, coffee, and breakfast. Both compete for the same grab-and-go donut occasion in similar Canadian demographic footprints.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coffee-time-donuts-incorporated

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Coffee Time Donuts