Zezura and Patrick Ruddell didn't expect their South Tampa-born business, a Best of the Bay-winning mini doughnut company, to take off like is has. But they’re glad it did.
“I think that’s the beauty of all of it,” says Zezura, who goes by Z. “We were thinking we were gonna be a mom-and-pop shop, and we were just happy with that. A year after opening, we had set certain goals that we wanted to meet, and we were already meeting those goals in like month two… So it’s been a pretty cool ride.”
Former real estate developers who wanted to tap into something that could survive a market crash that wasn’t cyclical, the wife-and-husband duo — who bought Perk’s Donut Bar off South Dale Mabry in 2015 — heard about the popularity of mini doughnuts in Canada through a friend. The Great White North’s minis are doughnut holes rolled in sugar, powder or drizzle that are eaten with a fork, the owners say, but they had a different idea.
Mini Doughnut Factory decorates its petite, customizable cake doughnuts, which arrive piping hot because they’re made to order, with specialty icings, drizzles and out-there toppings. When combined, they translate into winning mashups like Camp Fire (vanilla cake doughnut, chocolate icing, graham cracker crumble, marshmallow drizzle) and Sweet Pig (vanilla cake doughnut, maple icing, bacon).
There’s also a selection of milkshakes that call for blended doughnuts and house-made vanilla bean soft-serve, plus the latest menu addition: doughnut sundaes.
The couple’s success around town has led them and their beloved shrunken sweets to the other side of the bay. After more than six months of talking about opening in St. Petersburg — a location their dough-nutty customers were pining for — they’ve found a home for what will become their flagship at 730 Fourth St. N., the site of a Verizon Wireless store that’s since moved to a bigger property across the street.
Joining the small plaza’s two goliath restaurant chains, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Jimmy John’s, the Ruddells say they wanted their second Mini Doughnut, which is shooting for a May debut, in a residential neighborhood but still close to downtown, like the Tampa outpost.
“We knew that we would need to be on the outskirts of a metro area like this. And that’s the model that we kinda wanna follow for some of the other ones,” Z says. (More on that later.)
Mini Doughnut St. Pete will mirror its older sibling in several ways — the same menu; a similar store layout with the doughnut-making process on display for customers to see; murals from area artists on the interior walls (Jason Hulfish free-handed the doughnut conveyor belt mechanism behind the Tampa decorating station); and regularly rotating chalkboard art from another artist outside on the sidewalk.
The owners are tight-lipped about the other products they’re looking to launch, but whatever’s rolled out in St. Pete, Patrick says, will carry over to all their locations (we're getting there, we promise). That includes the tasty results of a little something else the duo has brewing: on-site coffee roasting.
“I’m not sure which end of the room it’s gonna be [on] yet. We’re working with the architect now, but we want the customers to see and smell and hear everything that goes on, not only with just the doughnuts but now with the coffee,” Patrick says. “And, to my knowledge, it is the only place in St. Petersburg that does on-site roasting. There’s a lot of mom-and-pop coffee shops, but nobody that roasts live.”
Different countries will supply the beans, and both Mini Doughnuts will offer the coffee by the cup and pound. Over the next few months, the couple is set to begin sourcing, testing and roasting green coffee beans for multiple profiles.
After the Ruddells knock down part of the wall that’s separating them from the shuttered Planet Beach next door, they’ll be between 1,750 and 1,800 square feet. An extra 400 to 500 square feet from the former tanning salon and spa will allow for additional storage, a sink and more seating — at least 25 seats compared to Tampa’s 17.
In addition to its coffee, the St. Pete shop will sell merchandise like mugs and T-shirts, which have been a surprise hit.
“When we bought Perk’s, we were limited to their design. Now we have no limitations. We got the exact amount of space that we wanted. We’re next to the city’s busiest Starbucks right down the street. People are gonna take that extra block trip to get something that they know is locally roasted,” Patrick says.
With Mini Doughnut St. Pete acting as the foundation for future shops, their next goal? Opening four more before the end of 2017. They’re scoping out the Carrollwood, New Tampa and Wesley Chapel areas, as well as Clearwater, Brandon, Sarasota, Miami and Orlando, for this statewide expansion.
The couple’s unsure about franchising, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t received requests. There’ve been hundreds, according to Patrick.
“When you’re in the food business, it’s a real estate business. You have to find where the key locations are, and so we’re gonna follow suit with some of the stronger restaurants like a Chipotle and a Jimmy John’s that don’t compete with us at all,” he says. “They don’t offer dessert products, but they’ve done their research on real estate, and they know where it’s busy.”
Founded more than a year ago, Mini Doughnut has forged close friendships between the Ruddells and their customers, including two couples who’ll join them for a triple date Saturday night.
Z says she hopes that bond follows them to Pinellas, where they intend to give back to the community. The owners have started the brainstorming phase of how they can partner on a charity event in May with 102.5 FM’s Seth Kushner and Drew Garabo, who aim to raise $75,000 for the Apple a Day Program.
“I’m hoping the welcome is as gracious as it’s been in Tampa. We’ve become like family,” Z says. “I love the people part of it, so I’m hoping the same thing happens over here where we just get a good welcome, and we can become involved with the community.”
This article appears in Jan 19-26, 2017.
