Dunkin’ Donuts throws away thousands of donuts, and it’s in of their smartest business ideas!

18 May 2026 · 1 min

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In this solo commentary, Dan Novaes explains how Dunkin’ Donuts abandoned an evening discount program that offered half‑price donuts after 6 p.m. The discount unintentionally taught customers to wait for cheaper prices, eroding daytime sales and devaluing the brand. By eliminating the discount and simply discarding any unsold donuts each night, Dunkin’ preserved its premium perception and ultimately increased profitability. Novaes uses the story to illustrate a broader marketing lesson: frequent discounts can cheapen a product and alter consumer psychology, so protecting brand value can be more financially beneficial than trying to sell leftover inventory at reduced prices.

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Dunkin' Donuts throws out thousands of donuts every single night, and it's one of the smartest decisions they've ever made. Here's the story that nobody tells you. Years ago, they tried evening discounts to clear unsold inventory. Half-price donuts after 6. Sounds like a win, but it wasn't. Customers figured out the pattern almost immediately and stopped buying donuts during the day. Why pay full price in the morning when you can get the same discount for half the price at night? Dunkin' didn't just lose revenue, they trained their own customers to wait them out, and they cheapened the product without even meaning to. So they shut down the whole thing. No more discounts, no more clearance, and if a donut didn't sell, it went into the bin, and the business got healthier because of it. And here's the lesson. When you discount too often, customers stop valuing your product you sell. You don't just change the price, you change the way people think about everything you make. Protecting the brand made them more money than they could ever sell with leftovers.