Mainebiz

F ive years ago, Leigh Kellis was a single mom living in her parents' attic, bartending at Enzo Wine Bar and on the verge of becoming a Spanish teacher. But she had a craving that she just couldn't shake. She hungered for the comfort of a doughnut — with- out the regret that goes along with indulging in an artifi cially fl avored treat from a package or a chain store. at craving ultimately led to the creation of e Holy Donut, which now has two locations, 35 employ- ees, sales in excess of $1 million and a national reputa- tion for providing intensely delicious treats for anyone who covets a "goodie" but dreads the guilt. With vegan and gluten-free varieties, fl avors like dark chocolate sea salt and mango glazed and a vow to stick with Maine ingredients, e Holy Donut has earned the praise of the Boston Globe, Elle, the Cooking Channel, Travel & Leisure and "CBS is Morning." In April, Fodor's Travel named e Holy Donut one of "America's top donut shops." Kellis' success is an object lesson in what can happen when you trust your gut and never stop searching for room to improve. "You have to be open to mistakes," says Kellis, 40, a Portland native. " at's how innovation happens. Opening a business requires patience and receptivity to learning and a lot of faith. But it doesn't require that you know it all. " Starting from scratch Kellis didn't know anything about baking or starting a business when she feverishly began making doughnuts in her parents' kitchen. But creating a decadent but wholesome treat "was like a mission from God," she says. "I love doughnuts and the idea of bringing it to Portland was exciting." Once she hit on a winning potato-based recipe, she brought six doughnuts to Coff ee By Design's Washington Avenue store to see if they'd sell. ey did and she brought back a dozen the next day. Soon she got orders from Whole Foods Market and Lois' Natural Marketplace and rented commercial kitchen space. Forty dozen doughnuts a week became 100 dozen. After eight months, she was yearning for a doughnut shop of her own. She asked fi ve investors for the $30,000 she needed to get started. ey all turned her down and tried to talk her out of it. So she borrowed money from her family and moved into Park Avenue space vacated by Terroni's Market, which left behind a refrigerator, cooler, a hood and other key appliances. Kellis and her family built a funky space where even fussy foodies could sit and savor the sweet smells and sneak a peek at doughnuts being made by hand. "It's not coming off a conveyor belt," she says. " ere's something about the experience of seeing how good food is made that people love. And there's some- thing that excites people about hand-made high quality food that's unusual and creative." Kellis opened a second location in the Old Port in October 2013, and assembled a team of staff ers willing to embrace her mission, and show up for shifts that began at 11 p.m. "I'm just so grateful for all these things," says Kellis. "I pinch myself all the time. We're like the little dough- nut shop that could." P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY You have to be open to mistakes. That's how innovation happens. Opening a business requires patience and receptivity and a lot of faith. New ways of marketing Holy Donut owner Leigh Kellis leverages doughnut sales with smart data collection B y J e n n i f e r V a n A l l e n Leigh Kellis Owner The Holy Donut, Portland Leigh Kellis, founder of The Holy Donut, at the Park Avenue location in Portland. VO L . X X I N O. X X I I I O C T O B E R 5 , 2 0 1 5 24

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