Leeanne Barone is the Chief Financial Officer and Director of Development for DALRT, Inc. Throughout her career of growing within the family Dunkin’ business, she has been a visionary for driving business growth while keeping her experienced appreciation for the crew and managers that run the stores day-to-day.

Read on for the Q&A session with Lee.

Where did you start in the business and where are you now? 

Leeanne: I was literally raised in the back room of our first Dunkin’. My parents started in the business when I was 6 months old. When I was a toddler, I rolled myself through the building in my little walker and rumor has it, I used to help myself to the munchkins on the bottom shelf. When I got a little older, one of our regular customers handmade for us a tiny rolling pin so I used to stand up on a milk crate at our big block baking table and help my dad “make” donuts. By the time I was 12 years old, I would help my mom to finish (decorate) donuts and when I was 14, donut finishing became an after school job.

I officially learned how to bake donuts when I was 16 years old, when we made every single donut from scratch, by hand. Finally, when I was about 19 years old, my parents started teaching me managerial tasks such as schedule writing, inventory, supply ordering and forecasting sales. It was at that time that I decided to end my college career at Penn State where I was studying to be a Physical Therapist, and devote all of my time and attention to the family business. It’s safe to say I have jelly in my veins and the thought of doing anything different just didn’t feel right.

From managing one location to overseeing 2 locations and then finally getting involved in the planning and construction of our third location, I knew I had made the right decision and I also had found my new passion which was planning and building our stores.

During that time, I slowly began taking over the finances that had always been my mother’s specialty. Given our drive to grow our network and the development of myself and my sisters into our Directorship roles, when the opportunity to expand into the Erie market became available, we were confident enough to make that jump.  I am officially titled our CFO as well as the Director of Development.

What’s next for DALRT’s Dunkin’ business?

Leeanne: A lot is happening! Since 2017, I have:

• Planned and built four new locations

• Managed the purchase and take-over of the two existing Erie locations

• Two new locations planned to open by 2022 year-end

• Two additional new locations in the works for 2023

• Two remodels are set to begin in 2022

This year also marks the official kick off to begin remodeling all of our older locations to the new NextGen style that we see in our newest locations. In the meantime, I continue to search for potential new sites as I keep our finances in good working order to keep up with our aggressive growth schedule.

Did you always think you’d be running the financial side of the business when the time came? 

Leeanne: Nope, not at all! Handling our finances was always my mothers passion. Everything I knew in the beginning I learned from her. While I had always considered myself a “numbers” person, it was more or less because I like to see growth and progress. I would keep little notebooks to compare sales and guest comps year over year. I loved setting goals for myself and seeing the results. It was a way of feeling pride and a sense of accomplishment.

Little did I know that I could turn that passion into a career that I actually really love! I am mostly self-taught and I am continually looking for ways and opportunities to better myself in my career. I was set up for success by my parents and they continue to encourage me to want to do better, and that has been a major driver throughout my life.

Tell me about the evolution of the business and your journey with Dunkin’ and your family.

Leeanne: I obviously loved Dunkin’ as a child. Who wouldn’t love unlimited donuts? I also loved the way that my parents’ employees felt more like family than workers. I will never forget the memories from my childhood of working at the Fair or the downtown Oktoberfest in a booth that my dad built, spending super long days with this work family and celebrating at Pizza Hut after a successful week. We would have work Christmas parties held in my parents home and my sister and I were friends with the children of these employees and had parties and sleepovers for birthdays and holidays. And we always had a friendly group of people that would invite us into their homes if we needed a last minute babysitter. We even had close relationships with many of our customers! We had one customer that eventually became an employee and also was chosen to be my sister’s Godfather! He worked for us for 38 years in some capacity or another and he is still considered part of the family.

Tell me what makes DALRT, Inc. so special.

Leeanne: The Dunkin’ that we know and love now was not always this way. There were many lean years where I saw my parents struggle and work around the clock.

As I got older, and managed my own location, I realized the value of treating my people like family. I finally understood why it felt like my parents sacrificed home life for the business.

They cared about their people. Their success was defined by the success of their employees. And in their darkest days, when they thought they would have to give up, it was their love and concern for their “family” that pushed them to keep going. They didn’t care what would happen to themselves. My parents were young and could get jobs anywhere, but what about all the others?

I hope in my days of managing I was able to carry on this culture.

I wanted my people to feel like I was a co-worker and not their boss. I would coach people on their personal finances (way before I ever thought this would eventually be my career), and help them build their credit. I helped several young employees to get their first apartments or vehicles. I would collect and donate home items to people who needed them. I took the opportunity to share the life-skills that had been passed on to me. My hope was to develop people into elevated positions that they may have never had the opportunity to achieve otherwise. This is still at the heart of D.A.L.R.T. to this day. The love, care and compassion we have for our DALRT family has been ingrained in us from the very beginning and it is a tradition that we have not forgotten.

What advice do you have for young entrepreneurs just starting their journey?

Leeanne: I honestly never dreamed I would be where I am, doing what I am doing, and enjoying it so much. I was blessed with an amazing opportunity and I did everything I could to excel in any area I could.

If I had to coach somebody to try to achieve the same success, I would say first and foremost, nothing is out of reach. No dreams or goals are too big. If you feel like you're fighting your hardest and you still fail, fight harder and never give up.

Next, find a business run by people who base their success on your success and work your way up! We love watching people grow and learn and achieve their dreams. If you’re a driven individual looking to make a career for yourself, consider seeking employment with D.A.L.R.T., Inc and you’ll soon feel you are part of something bigger, a family.

How do you stay motivated and inspired when things get tough?

Leeanne: When things get tough, much like my parents did way back when, I try to put myself in other people's shoes. While things may seem challenging for me at the moment, I know others have many more challenges that they may face on an ongoing basis. I remind myself of the many blessings in my life and I take the opportunity to try to pay it forward and help someone in some small way. I am grateful for the ability to give back, and that too, is something I learned from my parents.

Leeanne Miller is a second generation Dunkin’ Franchisee responsible for the company’s finances and growth.