New Downtown Doughnut Shop 'Tragically Dipped' Becomes Instant Hit

Arriving early for a bite at local downtown doughnut shop Tragically Dipped may be a good idea as the new joint sees daily sellouts since its soft opening last week Wednesday.

The name “Tragically Dipped” is an homage to the popular Canadian band “The Tragically Hip” and also references Frampton’s past work as a biohazard technician. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

"We were sold every day last week and we're sold out for pre-orders every day this week," said Mike Frampton, Tragically Dipped owner.

The new business owner says he makes roughly 485 doughnuts a day for preorders. He makes them available on Mondays at 10 a.m. but typically sells out by 4:30 p.m.

Frampton is overjoyed by the customer base and volume he’s attracted in his first week open.

"I couldn't have asked it to be busier so no complaints,” he said. “It's exactly what I wanted it to do and it's doing it."

Frampton’s doughnuts are all nut-free including tree nuts (almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, walnuts, etc.). Some doughnuts include gluten-free crullers, fritters, Boston cream, lemon-filled, jelly-filled, maple and honey dips that are available on rotation.

The shop also sells coffee and tea with homebrew options.

Frampton started the business as a change of direction and a mental health break from his previous job. He was a biohazard technician for 15 years, cleaning up contagions such as death scenes or hoarders’ homes.

The doughnut entrepreneur said he was finished with his past career’s trauma and wanted to go from ‘death to doughnuts.’

"Everyone in the city would know me as the 'death guy' before this and now I'm the 'donut guy' and I'll take it," he said. "This is so much better for my mental health.”

@ptbo_canada Move over Tim Hortons there’s a new Canadian favourite in town @TragicallyDippedDonut has no-nuts donuts made from scratch every day! #LocalEats #tragicallyhip #CoffeeShop #DonutShop #PTBOCanada ♬ Ahead By A Century - The Tragically Hip

Frampton had the storefront since May last year but ran into roadblocks and financial hiccups before opening last Wednesday.

Prior to the brick-and-mortar store, Frampton operated Tragically Dipped out of a food truck after receiving a $5,000 startup grant from the Peterborough and the Kawartha Economic Development in March last year.

In an effort to bolster and promote the community, Tragically Dipped will host First Friday Art Crawls to invite artists and chefs to do pop-ups to feature their work.

Customers can view local art and purchase it from the artists or enjoy food made by the chefs that come to in Tragically Dipped.

"Chefs to me are just as artistic as someone who is painting," remarked Frampton. "I would host a chef and they would come up with maybe a fun doughnut-themed or maybe not and we'd do food here and art."

The new entrepreneur thought his vision of a doughnut shop was not going to happen but was relieved to finally get his store open. He was overwhelmed by the response and publicity he received after his first week of business.

"This city is everything to me so to be able to do this in this city is fantastic. I wouldn't do this anywhere else,” reflected Frampton. “I'm blown away. Every time I peek out that door, there's a lineup of people and we're selling out.”

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