Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
A ‘hole’ new taste
Fractured Prune Doughnuts coming to West Chester
In 2016, Brandy Bell-Truskey and her husband, Tom Truskey started thinking about opening a familyrun business. It was while they were on a family summer vacation that year in Ocean City, N.J., that they discovered what their future endeavor would be.
The couple will soon be opening a Fractured Prune Doughnuts shop at the Bradford Plaza Shopping Center in West Chester. An Ocean City, Md., landmark since 1976, Fractured Prune Doughnuts is known for its hot, hand-dipped doughnuts.
“We went and checked them out on a Sunday then went and got more on the Monday. I think we had them every single day while we were in Ocean City. We were hooked,” Bell-Truskey said.
She added that after the trip, the couple talked about the possibility of opening a Fractured Prune Doughnuts Shop and then reached out to the CEO of the company, Dan Brinton in Feb. 2017. The couple traveled to Maryland for a meeting and started moving forward with plans.
Last month, the couple signed a lease for 1,300 square feet at the Bradford Plaza Shopping Center, 700 Downingtown Pike in West Chester. Bell-Truskey said they are planning a May opening for the shop.
She said the couple considered several locations before settling on Bradford Plaza, adding that Brinton spent time with her looking at possible sites.
Bell-Truskey said she is thrilled West Chester turned out to be the best location.
“This is our community. We live here and that’s our shopping center. The fact that we ended up there is fantastic. It’s a perfect location,” she said.
Customers will be able to customize their doughnuts with a variety of glazes and toppings. Glazes include key lime, mocha
and blackberry, while toppings range from cookie crumbs, mini-chocolate chips and sea salt to vanilla wafers and rainbow sprinkles.
“What people are going to love about these doughnuts is that they are hot, fresh and made to order. The inside is moist and fluffy and then you get to
choose your own glazes and topping,” Bell-Truskey added. “The toppings are really fun — my favorite is Bacon Bomb.”
While the space they are moving into was previously used for food service, there is work to be done to get it ready.
“We need to go in and make it our own. We are also working with an outof-state architecture firm to help guide us in the design process. We have a green, orange and purple logo
— and we will follow that color scheme on the inside of the store,” she said.
Bell-Truskey explained how on Saturday mornings, her husband takes their two children, ages 7 and almost 3, out for a little treat.
“Once we had the Fractured Prune Doughnuts — we said ‘this is what we need in West Chester,’ so other families that do what we do on a Saturday, can bring their kids to our shop,” she said.
She added that there’s an added bonus beyond the doughnuts.
“The kids love staring up over the counter. They can see them going into the fryer and when they come out — they can watch all the way through the process,” she added.
The 161,000-square-foot, grocery-anchored Bradford Plaza shopping center is leased and managed by North Plainfield, N.J.-based Levin Management Corp.
“Made-to-order concepts
— in this case a designer doughnut shop — comprise one of the most popular new dining trends today,” said Barry Borsky, leasing representative for Levin Management Corp. “Brands like Fractured Prune capitalize on consumers’ growing appetite for customized food experiences. There is nothing else like Fractured Prune available in this marketplace, and we are confident it will be a welcome addition to the local food scene.”
Fractured Prune Doughnuts has 26 locations in 10 states. In addition to the new West Chester location, new shops are planned in Audubon, at 2630 Egypt Road; and in Delaware and South Carolina.
For more information about Fractured Prune Doughnuts, visit https:// fracturedprune.com/ Email business story ideas to business editor/ writer drovins@21stcenturymedia.com