Donut Junction News

There was a delivery van that came with the Hol-n-One business. It had more than 375,000 miles on it in April. In July we watched it flip odomoter numbers to 400,000. Only, the 4 didn't appear. The numbers went from 399999 to 300000. Very disturbing.

At the end of July it stopped.

Ted was loaded for a delivery to southern Oregon. He got as far south of the warehouse as Olympia (30 miles?). AAA graciously towed it back to the warehouse and again to an AutoPro in Renton.

Do we rent? or buy a replacement?

Did you know that renting a vehicle for one weekend costs just as much as making a monthly payment on a replacement vehicle? We estimate that it would have cost us $1200.00 to rent a van or truck or something to do our August deliveries. And that would be in the hopes that the old Ford could be easily and quickly fixed.

AutoPro gave us a long list of things that were damaged inside the motor and transmission. And they gave us a $10,000.00 price tag.

We bought a replacement.

Bruce Chevrolet in Hillsboro was just as eager to sell to us as we were desperate to buy. And they have lived up to their end of the "certified used vehicle" responsibilities. So we now have a 1-ton delivery van that can fit the whole family, camping gear and more than a ton of product.

The new van happily hauled the old van back to Oregon for a cheaper solution to its repair needs. We will probably put a used motor and transmission in it, and then sell it.

All in all, that little episode cost us $1200.00 in July.

Our donut mix manufacturing business doesn't run itself. Every week I set aside several hours to contact all the customers of a given area. Those customers order products that we manufacture and then deliver to them. So, while making calls, I am also tracking inventory, placing orders for ingredients, making sure the mixing gets done and the deliveries get loaded. And I have the joy of doing these things at a home office about 150 miles from our warehouse (we call the company The Hol'N One, and the warehouse is affectionately labeled "The Donut Warehouse").

It does require careful planning. For instance, maximizing a delivery requires that we load enough product to fill enough orders so that our excessive gas bills don't exceed 12% of our sales $$ for that delivery run. The previous owners had some good advice to give us on that score, and we are applying it. So, our customers are used to a once a month visit from us, and we have our delivery routes organized in 4 week segments. Very clever!

That means, oh joy, oh surprise, that when a fifth week occurs in our scheduling, we get a vacation!

This Memorial Day weekend was such a fifth week. None of our customers needed anything after Wednesday evening. And none of them called until the following Tuesday morning. So, we had the break we needed.

I got caught up on sleep. We did some necessary car chores (shocks, struts, new tires, carburetor repair). We spent a day visiting living and dead relatives. We had our first restful Sunday in a long time. My folks hosted the Monday bar-b-q picnic.

I feel fully recovered from that hectic schedule of 10 days ago, and it all starts over tomorrow!

With the simple signing of papers and exchange of money, it is amazing what can be accomplished. We are now the proud owners of a great business. Whether it sinks, how it succeeds, when it will soar, it is all up to us. So we have made our first batches of mix and bagged them up. I am calling customers on a daily basis to make sure all their donut needs are met, and just as soon as our existing customers are provided for, I will be contacting potentially new customers.

We have 59 wonderful customers scattered throughout Oregon, Washington and Idaho. They are so spread out, in fact, that it is very expensive to just deliver to them each month. But since there is so much distance between customers, there is plenty of room to add more customers along the way. And as that occurs, our long trips to supply and support our customers will be the most enjoyable part of our regular business.

Tina and Eilif both told us how much they enjoyed each of their customers. Seeing them face to face each month was so important that Tina has been especially careful to make sure that we will do the same. She has graciously marked each customer's location on the map and helped me to plan through the best route to take when making deliveries. Now, it is up to us to get there and meet each one.

Today the final details of the transfer of ownership of Hol'N One Donuts were nailed down. Tina, the most wonderful, current owner, said it was more complicated than she had hoped. I, on the skeptical other hand, am pleased with how simple it all seems. Tina has been a blessing to negotiate with through this whole process. I am now eager to prove that her trust in us will be well placed.

Hol'N One Donut Company of the Northwest owns a proprietary formula for a cake donut mix, and the trademark under which it is distributed. We will have the privelege of making the mix, bagging it up, distributing it along with all the wonderful toppings and icings to customers all around the Pacific Northwest, finding and training new customers, installing and supporting donut making equipment, and thus growing Hol'N One Donuts into the best donut company in the west.

Of course we would like to rival our household name competitors at their own game. And we think this business model is poised to do so. We have some great clients already making donuts for their customers throughout Oregon, Washington and Idaho. We think there should be more. Wouldn't you like a fresh made donut with your Double-Tall-Mocha-Latte?

Tomorrow is my birthday. I find it meaningful that it is also the day on which I will purchase a new business and begin operations as the owner of Hol'N One Donut Company. For better or worse, we will be known as the Donut King and Donut Lady of the Northwest from henceforth and, well, you know.

We are still hoping to secure a large financing package to begin this venture, but until then, we will be building Hol'N One Donuts one crumb at a time. I will make my first delivery on the way home from the Seattle warehouse tomorrow. We plan to fill the van with an appropriate selection of product to begin making local deliveries from our home. Ted will get to do his first long distance delivery this week.

Then, next week, Ted will return to the cemetery for regular employment, taking occaisional days off to make deliveries and to run up to Seattle to mix products. I will get to take orders, plan deliveries and keep on looking for that funding.

We are getting a very different taste of what "new life" means. Following on the heels of Resurrection Sunday, we are counting this "new thing" as a good and perfect gift, a blessing from the Hand of God. What a priveledge! What a responsibility! What an obligation! What a lot of hard work awaits us!