Doughnut maker that rivals Krispy Kreme looks to possibly open 7 Lexington locations

If you thought Lexington had a lot of coffee and doughnut places before, well hold onto your hat. Because a new one is riding into town.

Texas-based Shipley Do-Nuts is one of the oldest and largest doughnut brands in the nation, with more than 341 locations. (For comparison, Krispy Kreme has 375 store locations.)

Founded in Houston in 1936, Shipley serves “do-nuts,” kolaches and coffee, either hot or iced. The company wants to expand into Kentucky, Ohio, Missouri and Kansas. They are offering incentives to potential franchisees and hope to open stores in the next year to 18 months.

Shipley is largely unknown in the Bluegrass. Mike Stout, director of franchise development, hopes to change that.

“We’re excited about our growth in the area for the future. It’s important to find folks local to the market to work with,” Stout said. He said he used to live in Louisville and “knowing Lexington, I feel like we would do well there.”

How many Shipley stores could be coming to Lexington?

Stout said he thinks the Lexington market could support six or seven Shipley stores eventually.

They will be joining a booming coffee and pastries market. Central Kentucky already has Dunkin’ and Krispy Kreme, plus 7 Brew, The Human Bean, Panera, Starbucks and Common Grounds, among other popular local options. Dutch Bros is opening soon, Scooters is already in Winchester and Wawa is trying to get a toehold in Lexington.

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On the doughnut side, there’s also Donut Days, Frank’s, Spalding’s, Donut World, and Parlor Doughnuts.

Besides Lexington, Shipley is looking at the Frankfort, Georgetown, Nicholasville, Richmond, Louisville, Bowling Green, Covington, Elizabethtown, Florence, Henderson, Hopkinsville, Independence, Jeffersontown, Owensboro and Paducah markets for expansion.

What makes Shipley Do-Nuts special?

“Our heritage — we’ve been around for 85 years — and our variety make us unique,” Stout said. “We make our doughnuts fresh every day in the store from a proprietary formula used since 1936.”

According to the menu, Shipley has more than 60 varieties, including iced, cake and filled versions.

What are kolaches?

“Another point of distinction is kolaches,” Stout said. These are made using the same yeast dough as the doughnuts but filled with either sweet or savory fillings, including sausage, ham and cheese and jalapenos and then baked.

“It’s just a delicious product, people like them for lunch as well,” Stout said. “It’s our number two product.”

Kolaches were brought to Texas in the 1880s by Czech immigrants who adapted what had been a sweet fruit-filed treat to an everyday staple. Stout said they are testing more fillings now and expect to expand the line.

What’s on Shipley’s drink menu?

He said they also plan to expand the beverage menu. The company is rolling out “botrista” computerized beverage dispensers that can deliver everything from lattes to iced energy drinks in a variety of flavors.

“Shipley has been extremely well-received in new states such as Maryland and Georgia, which we opened earlier this year,” said Shipley Do-Nuts CEO Flynn Dekker in a news release. “This is a great opportunity for potential franchisees to bring the brand to lucrative markets like Cincinnati, St. Louis, Kansas City, Indianapolis and many more throughout the Midwest.”

What’s driving Shipley Do-Nuts expansion?

Formerly family-owned, Shipley was acquired by private equity about two years ago and has focused on ways to take Texas favorites to customers with high-volume sales and rapid expansion.

Stout said they have three models of stores, including an in-line version that doesn’t need a drive-thru as well as versions with drive-thrus. Anyone interested in learning more about Shipley franchise opportunities can go to Ownashipley.com or Shipleydonuts.com.

Shipley already has more than 340 locations in 12 states and expects to nearly double in size over the next five years. It’s also looking to move into Colorado, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Florida and throughout the Southeast.