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It was recently discovered that the Reimanns, a super-wealthy German family who owns such companies as Krispy Kreme, Panera Bread, and Dr. Pepper, had ties to the Nazi regime during WWII.
It turns out their family made a large portion of its wealth making supplies for the Nazi army using POWs as slave labor.
Obviously, none of this information reflects well on Krispy Kreme or any of the Reimann's other companies, so the billionaire family decided to try and make it up to their customers by donating $11 million to charity.
Germany's billionaire Reimann family that owns Krispy Kreme is donating $11,000,000 over its Nazi past https://t.co/epWPwH0Sv7— TicToc by Bloomberg (@TicToc by Bloomberg) 1553563548.0
The secretive German family behind the company that owns Panera Bread, Krispy Kreme, and Pret a Manger is donating… https://t.co/gH7meVwhxe— Business Insider (@Business Insider) 1553523554.0
The world's youngest billionaires are worth $1.8 billion each. Their grandfather was said to be Nazi Germany’s rich… https://t.co/JszGRESwMD— TicToc by Bloomberg (@TicToc by Bloomberg) 1525336503.0
Peter Harf, a spokesperson for the Reimann family, confirmed their predecessor's involvement in the Nazi regime and made it clear the current Reimanns were staunchly against their ancestors.
"It is all correct. Reimann senior and Reimann junior were guilty ... they belonged in jail."
German family that owns Krispy Kreme, Panera Bread to donate $11,000,000 after learning of Nazi past: 'There is not… https://t.co/H1JH6SduGy— Yahoo News (@Yahoo News) 1553517015.0
The family owns innumerable companies that most Americans interact with on a daily basis.
Some brands under the Reimann family's JAB Holding: - Krispy Kreme - Peet's Coffee - Stumptown - Bai - Tully's Coff… https://t.co/n8E8YuLiir— TicToc by Bloomberg (@TicToc by Bloomberg) 1553569069.0
Considering the family's vast holdings, and current net worth estimated around $4 billion each, a single $11 million donation to a random charity seemed a bit paltry to some.
@YahooNews Wow. Just learned of their past? Well, 11m doesn't seem much.— Samiul Hoque Chowdhury (@Samiul Hoque Chowdhury) 1553593109.0
Others were simply shocked to see their favorite donut mired in controversy!
@CNN https://t.co/EyM5lSWFzY— Andrea Daniely (@Andrea Daniely) 1553539232.0
@CNN https://t.co/lUGTriPnpR— ℤ𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕣𝕚𝕗𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 (@ℤ𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕣𝕚𝕗𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟) 1553536294.0
Many people were ashamed of Krispy Kreme's past...but couldn't stop eating the donuts.
@CNNBusiness Damn that’s crazy. https://t.co/cWn12KwBzZ— Teflon (@Teflon) 1553535855.0
@CNNBusiness WOWW THATS CRAZY!!! https://t.co/t0FfvOycmT— JC 🇨🇺💦 (@JC 🇨🇺💦) 1553538767.0
@CNNBusiness Issa evil world we live in https://t.co/5UmzsHvLrX— V (@V) 1553537594.0
Many Twitter users called the Reimanns out on their half-hearted attempts to "get in front" of the controversy.
Shocked By Its Nazi Past, Germany’s 2nd Richest Family Writes a Random Charity Check https://t.co/TxNQlZ1O0X https://t.co/leEKOP9Mdp— OBSERVER (@OBSERVER) 1553553903.0
@observer The timing and rhythm of this just reeks of... ‘getting out in front’ of something 101— Aaron Bell (@Aaron Bell) 1553597182.0
@observer "Shocked"?? How did they "not know"?— OldeHippi (@OldeHippi) 1553593514.0
@OldeHippi @observer That’s what I thought. It’s not like it’s 500 years ago, it’s literally their parents isn’t it?— Kirsty Koo Koo (@Kirsty Koo Koo) 1553594658.0
$11 million from a family of billionaires seemed like a pittance to many.
@observer This family as completely aware of their miserable past. It took them over seven decades and several new… https://t.co/W1gpV6s53V— luminaria98 (@luminaria98) 1553608120.0
@YahooNews Missed the perfect opportunity to say glazed over— Brock Beck (@Brock Beck) 1553611050.0
Others, however, felt the family's reparations were a step in the right direction.
@JohnRob16933826 @YahooNews They knew that their family had connections to the Nazi regime but they did not realize… https://t.co/SRZi7k0sjk— Sam 🇺🇸 (@Sam 🇺🇸) 1553607361.0
@YahooNews At least they are accepting responsibility for their dead parents past and trying to right a wrong.— Casey (@Casey) 1553613280.0
It just goes to show—acts of great evil continue to impact people's lives, decades and even centuries later. The horrors of Nazi Germany aren't as distant as we'd like to think they are, and humankind must remain vigilant to ensure similar regimes don't spring up in its place.
This Dutch project is returning art to Jewish families after being stolen by Nazis https://t.co/zQOhpFCfnJ— TicToc by Bloomberg (@TicToc by Bloomberg) 1541392879.0