Joe’s Doughs pop-up doughnut shop to open a brick and mortar storefront
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Joe’s Doughs Charlotte
Doughnut dreams do come true, Charlotte. Joe’s Doughs, a wildly popular pop-up shop operating every other week out of The Daily Press in NoDa, is in search of a permanent location where they can sling doughnuts on the daily.
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When we talked to owner Joey Pepe back in June, he said opening a brick and mortar shop wasn’t necessarily his end goal for Joe’s Doughs, which had been operating as a pop-up shop for less than a year. But increasing demand and consistent sell outs in under an hour at his bi-monthly sales have drawn additional eyes to the operation.
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Pepe’s priority has always been to make Joe’s Doughs successful without sacrificing his full-time career with his band SLEEPLUST. Just when he was planning to leave Joe’s Doughs behind to pursue new opportunities with the band, he got a very important phone call.
“I was extremely excited about the new endeavors with the band, but I was sad about leaving this small pop up my fiancé Jen and I had created,” he said. “Two days after all of this was set in stone to shut it down, I got a phone call from some investors wanting a meeting.
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With the help of his investors, Pepe has hired a general manager to run the day to day operation of the shop while he will work as a creative partner and part owner.
“This is the perfect situation so I can help run the shop without having to get up at 3am to make donuts,” he said.
Pepe’s plan is to have a small shop with a counter and some additional seating. “We’ll be serving up the best gourmet donuts in Charlotte along with the best local coffee the area has to offer,” he said. “Aesthetically I want to combine local art into the shop with a modern and fun vibe.”
Right now, Pepe is struggling to find the perfect space and is hoping to find the right realtor to help him land the future home of Joe’s Doughs. He’s eyeing spots in Plaza Midwood, NoDa and Elizabeth where he says Joe’s Doughs would complement the existing food and art scenes.
He says he never expected his doughnut hobby to go in this direction. “This is something fun I started doing with my fiancé to keep busy while I was off tour for a few months,” he said. “I’m so excited that the community has embraced us and loved our product so much and I look forward to the Joe’s Doughs shop continuing to serve the Charlotte community in new and exciting ways.