After Krispy Kreme was bought back from Beatrice, that growth disappeared to help repay debts of approximately five times the company's equity. Joseph A. McAleer, Sr., led the group of investors who bought the company in 1982 in a $22 million leveraged buyout. McAleer had been one of the chain's most successful franchisees. After grooming his son, Mac, for the CEO position, Joseph McAleer, Sr., retired in 1988. Another son, Jack, served as vice-president of sales and marketing. Scott Livengood, a Winston-Salem native who had joined the company during the Beatrice years, served as president.