Volume 1, No. 20. November 20, 2001
PHOTO: Krispy Kreme Doughnuts at a LEGOLAND food stand. Photo courtesy of LEGOLAND
Running circles
Never tell Kina Paegert hers is not
a sweet job. The senior representative of media relations at LEGOLAND California
in Carlsbad had the enviable task of promoting the park's landing of a Krispy
Kreme Doughnuts franchise. With the park and confection partnership kicking
off in a celebratory day October 20, Paegert made the rounds of media outlets
earlier in the week, hand-delivering Krispy Kremes to delighted journalists
throughout San Diego County.
"LEGOLAND was definitely the hero in the media's eyes," Paegert said upon delivering
a total of 72 dozen doughnuts to 24 outlets. The process involved 5 a.m (05,00)
pickups of doughnuts, placing LEGOLAND and LEGO brick stickers on each box,
and driving them to television stations and newspapers on the first day, and
repeating the early morning drive the second day for radio stations. She used
her own car for the task, an Acura Integra. "It's amazing how many doughnuts
you can really put in there," she said, but she had to lay the back seat down
and stack the boxes to the ceiling.
While reporters, editors and deejays
appreciated the treat, Paegert did encounter some hassles during delivery thanks
to heightened security. Some of the television stations opened the boxes to
ensure they carried doughnuts before allowing her admission. The efforts paid
off, though, from the mouths of ecstatic deejays and the visual of Krispy Kreme
boxes on the local NBC affiliate's news desk.
For Paegert this was a true labor of love. The daughter of a career Navy man,
she spent a lot of childhood time in the South growing where Krispy Kremes have
long dominated the doughnut market. Two days of close confines with the confection
did not dampen her love for the doughnuts, either. "Are you kidding? You can
never get sick of Krispy Kremes. They're awesome!" she said. And in a real test
of her professionalism, while she bought one doughnut for herself each day of
the media rounds, she did not sneak a sample from the press' gifts.