Today we’d like to introduce you to Shelley Pippin
Shelley , we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
In 2013 my then boyfriend, now husband, and I were growing disenchanted in our corporate careers. I had been working in corporate marketing and consulting for several years and he was working in accounting. In our free time, we did a lot of eating and drinking! At that time, the city was enjoying a food renaissance and brewery boom and we were fully immersed and inspired at that time to begin dreaming about a project on the side where we could explore our own creativity and love of the industry.
While neither of us had much previous experience in the hospitality space, we had a lot of tenacity and energy. I think my previous years of living in amazing food cities like Chicago and Austin had sparked something within me that led to the idea for Brewnuts. In those cities I had seen firsthand how quirky concepts and seemingly disparate food and drink concepts had been paired in successful ways.
One night I had the lightning bolt idea for Brewnuts: a Donut Bar. It would combine our personal guilty pleasures and be a place of community intended to surprise and delight guests where we could consistently scratch our itch to throw themed events and express our creativity. The next day we went out and bought a countertop fryer and never looked back.
Within short order we enrolled in two business incubators, began working on our product and trialing it at every chance we had. We entered every business pitch competition we could find and truly went all in. By 2014 we had won a temporary storefront through the Tremont West Development Corporation’s business incubator program and by 2015 we found the space that is now Brewnuts home at 6501 Detroit Ave in Detroit Shoreway.
After a very laborious two-year build out that included a full gut to the studs, we opened our doors in September of 2017 and have been holding down our corner on 65th and Detroit ever since.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has absolutely not been a smooth road. I don’t think any entreprenuerial story is – especially one in the hospitality industry! From the aforementioned two-year build out that was an incredibly challenging experience rife with delays and incompetency beyond our control, to the COVID pandemic to the current struggles our industry is facing with an unstable market and economy, it is not an industry for the faint of heart.
One of the biggest lessons I remind myself of frequently is that you need to know where you’re going but be incredibly nimble about how you get there. You can never stay too married to a plan because it is going to change. Staying mentally flexible, learning how to handle pressure and finding good industry friends along the way is key to survival.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Brewnuts is Ohio’s one and only Donut Bar. We combine the hospitality of the corner donut shop with the comfort of your favorite watering hole. We’ve become just as known for our award winning donuts as we have for our roster of creative events and themed menus aimed at making all groups feel welcome and delighted.
You can catch us throwing a standing room only 8a Formula 1 watch party with sound on, to a Friday night drag show, to a monthly book swap. Truly, we pride ourselves on providing our community a one-of-a-kind space that is always there for some escapism and joy.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
I touched on this a bit before, staying mentally flexible and learning how to handle stress are two of the biggest skills I’ve had to learn in my business ownership journey. Your capacity for challenges and opportunities increase as you hone these skills.
Earlier in my journey, I did not have the same bandwidth I do now because I hadn’t strengthened these muscles yet. It’s so critical to learn the balance of being prepared but knowing you can’t control everything. Being curious but not letting what you don’t know stop you or eat you up too much. Perfect will always be the enemy of the good and sometimes with scary things, like starting and managing a business, you need to be willing to act before you feel ready. This is where the ability to handle stress and manage your mindset comes in.
Managing your own mental health in the face of business ownership is the greatest thing you can do not ony for yourself, but for the longevity and health of your business and your team.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.brewnutscleveland.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brewnuts
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brewnuts
