Duck Donuts fills QC with gooey goodness
Apr. 16—As the saying goes, "Behind every successful man, there is a strong woman."
Daniel and Ashley Bruno are proof of that. Thanks to Ashley's pregnancy cravings, the couple has found sweet success with Duck Donuts. Recently, they opened their second Arizona store, this time in Queen Creek. The other, in Chandler, debuted in December 2019.
"We have one style of doughnuts," he said. "They're all vanilla cake. We have various assortments; we do things by season and by holidays. We have you covered any time of the year."
Daniel said guests love "anything with bacon" — maple bacon or "bacon in the sun" (bacon with salted caramel drizzle). Flavors for the less adventurous include chocolate explosion, cinnamon bun, chocolate-covered strawberry, French toast and coconut island bliss.
Duck Donuts was founded in 2006 in Duck, North Carolina, by Russ DiGilio and Robin Griffith, and has since expanded to over 100 locations in the United States.
"The 'duck' is from the city of Duck, on the outer banks of North Carolina," he said. "We're part of a franchise. I brought the brand to Arizona about five years ago."
The Brunos met at ASU and married in 2014. He had a job opportunity to move for business anywhere in the southeast. They chose Charlotte, North Carolina, which was considered, he said, the No. 1 place for young, professional couples.
The two returned from their honeymoon, told their parents they were moving to Charlotte, rented out their home in Arizona and took off. While they were in North Carolina, they were introduced to Duck Donuts.
"We were in the Outer Banks when my wife was pregnant," he said. "She was having these cravings for sweets. I went out, met locals and said, 'My wife is pregnant. What should I get her?' They said Duck Donuts. I didn't know what it was.
"They said, 'Smell that? Follow your nose.' I literally walked over to the place, and they were making the doughnuts. There are no showcases or cabinets. Everything is made fresh. I ended up buying a dozen. She was hooked ever since."
When the two returned to Charlotte from the Outer Banks, they found out a Duck Donuts was in the neighborhood.
"For the next four years, we had warm, delicious doughnuts, made to order, all the time," he said.
In 2018, the Brunos returned to Arizona, where Ashley was raised. The Cactus High School graduate was pregnant with their second child and, again, on a late Thursday night, she wanted Duck Donuts.
"I said, 'We're in Arizona. That's not going to happen,'" said Daniel, then a stay-at-home dad. "She said, 'Figure it out.' I got in touch with Duck Donuts corporate in Pennsylvania, flew out there, met with them and we put our first store in Chandler.
"I would never have thought it would have happened this way, but it did. Having the children is wonderful, but they make you achieve amazing things."
Daniel and Ashley noticed a large contingent traveling from Queen Creek to the Chandler store. So it was only natural that they open a location there.
"We worked with our development team to figure out something in Queen Creek," said Daniel, a Brooklyn native.
"We ended up choosing the place where we are now. It took almost two years to get that deal done, from contract to build out. We got it all figured out and we've been open since Jan. 25."
Daniel said it's great to be in Queen Creek, which he calls a "phenomenal neighborhood."
"They've been so welcoming to the brand and me and my family," he said. "I bring my kids — ages 5, 7 and 8 months — as they have a lot to add.
"The neighborhood is great. People can walk over. You have your 'carriage brigades' with moms doing things, fathers on the weekends taking over for the moms. Folks come over from Macayo's, if there's a wait. If they're at the nail salon, they'll come over to us. The exposure has been great for the brand."
The Brunos have partnered with local schools for fundraising — which includes the selling of doughnuts and the brand's infamous rubber ducks.
"We sell more of those little rubber ducks than doughnuts — believe it or not," he said with a laugh. "Our store is loaded with them. We have the largest collection of rubber duckies in the state of Arizona."
Duck Donuts
22480 E. Ocotillo Road, Suite C101, Queen Creek
480-454-3674
