Starbucks, Krispy Kreme among chains giving free items to front-line responders

Several major chains are stepping up to offer support to healthcare workers during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Starbucks is offering free coffee to front line responders through May 3. Any customer who identifies as a front-line responder to the COVID-19 outbreak will receive a tall brewed coffee (hot or iced) at no charge.  (In addition, the Starbucks Foundation will donate $500,000 to support U.S. front-line responders with equal donations to Direct Relief to support the delivery of personal protective equipment and essential medical items and to Operation Gratitude to deliver 50,000 care packages and handwritten letters to first responders and health care workers.)

Krispy Kreme will give healthcare workers a dozen of its iconic glazed doughnuts for free every Monday, March 30, through May 11. Healthcare workers just need to show their badge at any Krispy Kreme drive-thru.

Tropical Smoothie is aiming to give away 100,000 smoothies to hospital workers/first responders across the country and has challenged each of its locations to donate 100-plus smoothies to hospitals in their community. Within just one day, local franchise owners already jumped on board, with some committing to donate at least 600, the company said.

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