Dollars to Doughnuts

Shawn Wampole jokes that he made a lateral move from his former career as a police officer to his new life as co-owner of the Donut Experiment.

Several years ago, he and his wife, Cecilia, brought their kids on vacation to Anna Maria Island. They were living in the Philadelphia area at the time and had visited a lot of northeast beach towns, where there was always a local doughnut shop. “And we couldn't believe there wasn't a doughnut shop here,” he says.

The couple went back home and, somewhat in jest, said they should open one on Anna Maria Island. Before they knew it, they'd sold their home, quit their jobs and liquidated as many assets as they could to turn their doughnut dream into a reality.