Donut Land has been in its current location, selling donuts for over 50 years. With over 50 kinds of donuts and “fancies”, anyone can find the perfect snack or dessert in their case. In November of 2023, Cleveland.com named Donut Land the best donuts in Northeast Ohio, which has brought them customers from all corners of Northeast Ohio and even out of state. They also offer coffee, tea, and hot chocolate so it is easy to start your day at Donut Land.
1321 Pearl Rd.
Brunswick, OH 44256
330-225-7912
How did the business start?
William (Bill) Rienerth Sr. launched the business in 1972. Prior to that he worked for donut makers in Cleveland. Meeting some people from Brunswick, he learned about the community and wanted to live there. He and his family moved to Brunswick in 1962 as they liked the environment and the slower pace. Originally there was a local pizza shop that also sold donuts, but when it changed hands the owner stopped making donuts and eventually stopped selling them as well. Donut Land became the go-to in the area for the best donuts.
What challenges are you facing?
In the last twenty years we see a bump in sales in February on paczkis which have become a Fat Tuesday staple for many people. Through COVID, we increased business significantly and had a lot of delivery business. Then in November of 2023 we were named the best donuts in Northeast Ohio. That next day we saw record sales from all over the region! With all this growth, we are running out of space and trying to determine how we can grow. We need to store a lot of supplies like flour and sugar and fillings and then need enough space to make the donuts, have them rise, and then fry those that get fried. We need space to decorate them and then counter space to display and sell. It takes a lot of room to make it work!
Where are your customers and suppliers?
Our suppliers are all over Northeast Ohio and Pennsylvania. But our customers are all over the country. People who grew up in the area or visited family here, people who see our social media posts or the Cleveland.com article, or just people who like to try donuts! We can’t ship them just yet, but that may happen some day.
Does your company focus on any sustainability efforts?
We do what we can. Much of the packaging has food residue on it so recycling is a challenge. But all ingredients that come in buckets we wash the buckets and give them away. Many different industries use them including farmers and people who work with tools because they are a great size and shape to carry things. One area we excel is when there are donuts left at the end of the day. We have a gentleman who comes and picks up whatever is left at the end of the day and delivers to homeless shelters. It isn’t often someone with food insecurity gets a sweet treat and we’re happy they can enjoy our donuts.
How does your business interact with government?
We have the usual interactions with taxes and working with local government on buildings. But where we have something unique is that any business that sells food to the public is inspected by the Medina County Health Department. They provide a lot of great services and one of them is inspecting food-related businesses to make sure we are following every standard there is for keeping our store clean and safe, providing a safe product, and our ingredients are fresh and going to make a good product.
How does someone get a job with your company?
When we are hiring, they can fill out an application and we will interview them. It is really important we get the right people in our positions because the training for a baker is 9 months to a year. It seems like it would be easy to learn, but in reality you have to understand the chemistry going into the dough. Things like humidty and weather can change how the dough reacts and the baker has to know how to adjust the recipe to get the same product every time. Until you have gone through an entire weather cycle, you may not know what to do to address issues. We also need people that will be part of our family. We all get along really well and work well together so we need people who will support each other and expect the same quality as our current team.
Why Do People Like to Work Here?
Everyone gets a chance to interact with our customers and those customers are great. We have some folks who come in every single day or a couple times a week. We know them more than just people who eat donuts. And we are a family. We know each other well, we know their family, and we hold each other accountable. The work isn’t easy and people need to be serious about producing a quality product. But we also know life is happening so we try to support each other and help where we can. We all want everyone here to succeed.