Lucrative Dough

Krispy Kreme (Winston Salem, N.C.) has opened a shop in Hong Kong, China's richest city. The 2000-square feet shop in the Causeway Bay shopping district marks its first in China and only its second foray into East Asia.

In addition to Hong Kong, the company has signed franchise deals with groups in Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia, which plan to open stores by the end of the year. The U.S. doughnut maker also signed up a franchisee in the Middle East.

Krispy Kreme's foreign expansion comes as the company tries to rebuild after a slew of corporate troubles, including sinking sales, store closings, layoffs, lawsuits and an investigation by U.S. stock market regulators. The company fired its chief executive last year and reported a net loss of $198 million for fiscal 2005, which ended Jan. 30, 2005. It has yet to release its fiscal 2006 results.