Krispy Kreme is celebrating its 78th Birthday with a special gift for its U.S. fans. Friday, July 10, 2015, stop into a participating Krispy Kreme U.S. shop and pick up a dozen Original Glazed doughnuts for 78 cents with the purchase of a dozen of any variety doughnuts--including Krispy Kreme's deliciously festive Birthday Cake Batter Doughnut. Krispy Kreme's 78th Birthday offer is valid on July 10, 2015 at any participating Krispy Kreme U.S. locations. A regularly-priced Original Glazed dozen can cost about $10.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc. is an American global doughnut company and coffeehouse chain based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Krispy Kreme founder Vernon Rudolph bought a yeast-raised recipe from a New Orleans chef, rented a building in what is now historic Old Salem in Winston-Salem, and began selling to local grocery stores.

In 1933, eighteen-year-old Vernon Rudolph began working for his uncle, Ishmael Armstrong, who owned a small general store in Paducah, Kentucky that sold a wide variety of goods, including its very popular doughnuts. While the exact origin of the doughnut recipe remains partially a mystery, it is believed that Ishmael Armstrong was inspired by an Ohio River barge cook named Joseph LeBeouf who was famous for his light and fluffy doughnuts.

The store struggled during the Great Depression, so in 1934 Vernon and Ishmael decided to move to the larger city of Nashville, Tennessee where they hoped business would be better. The uncle and nephew focused solely on selling their doughnuts and opened "The Krispy Kreme Doughnut Company" in a rented store on Gallatin Road. The shop did so well that Vernon's father, Plumie, also left Kentucky and moved to Nashville to help sell doughnuts. In 1937, Vernon Rudolph opened his own store, deciding on Winston-Salem, North Carolina for the location when he learned that his favorite cigarette company, Camel Cigarettes, was headquartered in the small North Carolina city.