Shaquille O'Neal's plan to rebuild Ponce's historic Krispy Kreme store now set in motion after it was burned down twice

Shaquille O'Neal and the Krispy Kreme brand are only going to get stronger than ever despite recent adversity. Krispy Kreme, of Ponce de Leon Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia, was gutted by two fires. The first fire that hit last February was followed by another one in July.

The historic establishment was famously known for donating 150 dozen doughnuts during Martin King Luther Jr.’s funeral in 1968. A rebuild is on the way with the original designs of the place to be brought back as a historical reminder. Shaquille O'Neal, who owns the Ponce de Leon Krispy Kreme, is set to shell out $1,400,000 to bring the place back to its glory days.

Per Krispy Kreme:

“The Ponce De Leon location is one of our most historic and iconic shops and together with our partner, Shaquille O’Neal, we’ve been looking forward to bringing back the joy that is Krispy Kreme to midtown Atlanta for nearly a year.”

While Krispy Kreme and Shaquille O'Neal are trying to deal with the pandemic, they have put in place a makeshift drive-thru service. The temporary drive-thru set-up opened last December 7 and is seeing more of its regular clients coming back. The whole menu is not yet available, so only the best and most famous delicacies are available to the public.

Shaq and Krispy Kreme have not yet given an exact date for the reconstruction. However, they assure their patrons that several of the iconic parts of the Ponce De Leon branch will be retained. The planned reconstruction will begin in 2022.

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Shaquille O'Neal is building his business empire in Atlanta, Georgia

Shaquille O'Neal also invested in nine Papa John's stores in Atlanta, Georgia.[Photo: Truthout]

In addition to Krispy Kreme, Shaquille O'Neal is also associated with the pizza company Papa John’s. The four-time NBA champion is a board member and a brand ambassador for the company. He is also a franchisee with 9 stores in the Atlanta, Georgia area.

Shaquille O'Neal almost single-handedly brought the company to relevance following the infamous ouster of its founder John Schnatter. After Schnatter’s removal, Shaq has been the face of the company’s ads.

With Shaquille O'Neal’s business enterprises in Atlanta, it’s safe to say that giving back to communities will also be a part of the equation. Earlier this year, Shaq partnered with insurance company The General to give back to the Atlanta community.

Shaq and The General are aiming to give the most locally known business enterprises the boost they need during the pandemic. As these businesses have been such a big part of the community, Shaq is making sure they are also looked after. The Superman living and doing business in Atlanta will only alleviate the lives of people in the area.