Marlton’s Federal Donuts is closing and will reopen as Randy’s Donuts
The franchise location in South Jersey opened less than two years ago.
Federal Donuts & Chicken in Marlton is closing for business this weekend, just 18 months after opening its doors at the Marlton Square shopping center.
And the franchise’s owner already has plans to reopen as a different donut shop before the end of the year.
“We’re actually in the process of closing our location in Marlton at the end of this month, on Oct. 31, and we are converting over to a brand called Randy’s Donuts and we’re bringing them to New Jersey,” said Mark Heinz, a co-owner of the Marlton franchise location.
While they’re looking forward to a future as Randy’s, Heinz said the decision to close as Federal and open a different franchise was not an easy one.
“We did love Federal Donuts deeply,” he said. “That was what we thought we wanted to be but unfortunately there’s been a lot of issues with the company lately, and they’ve closed several other locations, unfortunately.”
The closure in South Jersey comes after Federal Donuts’ largest franchisee shuttered several stores in Philadelphia and the suburbs this spring.
The Philadelphia-based eatery specializing in fried chicken, specialty donuts, and breakfast sandwiches opened its first location at the corner of 2nd and Manton Streets in 2011.
Without the Marlton store, Federal Donuts is left with four remaining locations in the area: Philadelphia International Airport, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, 701 N. Seventh St. in North Philadelphia, and a seasonal operation at Citizens Bank Park, according to the company website.
Federal Donuts founders Mike Solomonov and Steve Cook, who are franchisees and owners of the Seventh Street location, still have a stake in the company, which is owned mostly by NewSpring Capital, a Radnor private-equity firm.
Cook declined to comment on the closure in Marlton. NewSpring Capital did not respond to requests for comment.
The Marlton shop will be the first Randy’s Donuts in New Jersey while work is already underway on a second location in Princeton, Heinz said.
The popular California-based bakery is best known for its vast selection of handmade donuts alongside the massive golden brown donut that sits on the rooftop of the flagship location in Inglewood.
Heinz and his staff have been on the West Coast learning the tricks of the trade of the Randy’s business ahead of a planned opening in mid-December, he said.
The 20 employees that currently run Federal Donuts will be kept on staff through the transition, Heinz said.
“It’s really going to be a true bakery when it comes to South Jersey,” he said. “We actually have bakers who are going to be baking in the mornings and doing these donuts.”
“It’s more in line as a bakery, whereas Federal was more of a restaurant where it was serving chicken sandwiches, fries, and drinks, and also donuts as well,” Heinz said. “People had a little bit of a hard time, I think, with the identity of that.”
Inquirer reporter Mike Klein contributed to this story.
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