Boston Donuts Opens Third Locale | Owner: Patrons are friends first, customers second
Photo/Christina H. Davis
Boston Donuts now has two locations in Fitchburg as well as one location in Worcester, pictured above.
It’s not easy being a little donut-and-coffee shop in the heart of Dunkin’ Donuts country. And it’s not easy starting up a new location in a penny-pinching time and place.
But Boston Donuts has handled the first challenge ably for nearly a decade, and owner Eyad Nashef says he’s up for the second one as well.
Boston Donuts opened its third shop on Route 12 in Fitchburg in late January. Nashef said he knows it’s “kind of like a gamble” to expand his small chain right now, but he got an offer from the new owner of a gas station at the location and decided it made sense to join forces by selling donuts and coffee there.
Baked To Perfection
It might not be obvious from the name, but Boston Donuts is a native Fitchburg institution. Nashef founded the first shop, at another gas station on Mechanics Street, in 2002. In 2005, he opened a freestanding shop on Park Avenue in Worcester that became the company’s headquarters.
Nashef said the key to the company’s brand is service, which starts with thinking of patrons as “friends first, customers second.” It helps, he said, that he has a loyal staff and low employee turnover.
Another selling point is the fact that the company makes its own baked goods at the Worcester location, though Nashef said it would be cheaper to buy pre-made frozen goods.
“It brings your costs lower,” he said. “But we do not accept that. We like to serve donuts and coffee the way we like to buy it.” Even in the face of Dunkin’s ubiquitous presence, other small chains have had some success in Central Massachusetts. In the Fitchburg area alone, Gourmet Donuts and Dippin Donuts each have three locations.
Nashef said he abides by some basic principles that should serve any business.
“Just maintain your service, maintain your high level of service and quality and the business should grow,” he said.
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