Down for Doughnuts has a sweet business plan

from Lake Norman Currents Magazine

by Lake Norman Currents

How to plan a micro wedding

A Sweet Business Plan

Down for Doughnuts employs inDiviDuals with physical anD intellectual Disabilities

by Karel Bond Lucander photography by Jamie Cowles

Left to right: Lisa and David Cooper with their children, Regan and Zach.

Zach Cooper, 31, always dreamed of going to work with his dad, David. After 26 years working for Wells Fargo in operations management, David retired in 2019. And for the past 15 years, Mooresville residents David and wife, Lisa, explored businesses where he and Zach could work side-by-side. Zach suggested a doughnut shop.

Zach has Down syndrome, and the Coopers were also committed to hiring others with intellectual and physical disabilities. That became part of their sweet business plan for Down for Doughnuts in Mooresville, with a tagline of “Made to Inspire.” Including Zach, they have seven employees with disabilities who are now making doughnuts, helping at the window and greeting customers. Students enrolled in the local high school’s Exceptional Children’s Teachers & Occupational Course of Study also volunteer here to fulfill course requirements.

“If you’re having a bad day, you need to hang out here because your mood is going to change for the better,” says Lisa. As both David and Lisa say, parenting Zach has made them better people and shown them that “the glass is always full.”

David researched high-quality sourcing and doughnut-making techniques, eventually partnering with Dawn Foods. This legendary bakery product manufacturer helped them get set up, including sending an executive chef to train David at their store.

Upfitting the 1952 building for Down for Doughnuts was a challenge, with many renovations. But since the shop opened on March 21, 2020, which is World Down Syndrome Day, business has been pretty good, considering the COVID-19 pandemic.

Once people try their doughnuts, with a consistency similar to Krispy Kreme’s, they’re hooked. (They also have a daily cake-like “Dunkin’-style” doughnut.) Many customers on social media say, “they have the best doughnuts in Lake Norman!” The line wrapping around the building some mornings reinforces these rave reviews. The Coopers say the key to their wildly popular treat is excellent ingredients and making fresh dough each morning at 4 a.m.

Lisa and their daughter, Regan, are both exceptional children’s teachers at Rocky River Elementary School in Mooresville and help at the shop on weekends. But any day you stop by to pick up doughnuts at the window, you can catch a glimpse of Zach and David living the dream: Working together, side-by-side, at Down for Doughnuts.