MUNCIE, Ind. (NewsLink) -- Ice cream, donuts, boba oh my! Jack’s Donuts is back in Muncie after a while.
The donut shop from New Castle, Ind made its way to Muncie years ago. However, the shop closed around three years ago. Now, the franchise has a new owner in Muncie and opened its doors to the Ball State University community on Oct. 5.
April Simpson is the new owner of Jack’s Donuts in Muncie. The store called ‘Jack’s Donuts of the Village’ is located on the edge of Ball State’s campus. This is a central area where local bars, restaurants, and shops are accessible to campus within walking distance.
“We’re so excited to be back,” Simpson said. “My son used to live [down the road] and I always loved this location.”
Simpson is referring to the location of Jack’s. The building used to be an old Subway and has been vacant for two years. Simpson said she knew that if she was going to start a Jack’s, it had to be in that location.
“It’s right on the edge of campus and I love the atmosphere of the village,” Simpson said. “It was the right place.”
CEO Jack ‘Lee’ Marcum also said that Jack’s would not have been back in Muncie if it wasn’t for Simpson and the location.
“It’s a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful location and I love how the students have been so welcoming,” Marcum said. “And just the whole campus in general, not just the students. All the staff members, everybody, it’s a dream being here. And I’ll be honest with you, Muncie was not really on my radar for a while. I wanted to develop into other markets, but April, the owner, called me and she convinced me.”
Jack’s has been open for around a week now. However, this has come with some challenges.
“Donut shops normally have a crowd outside at 4:15 am waiting for the doors to open at 5 am,” Marcum said. “Here, when we opened the doors at 8 am on opening day, there were crickets. But there were crickets all over campus. It was dead.”
Marcum said the atmosphere at this new location is something different for the company. He explained how college students wake up and don't have normal nine to five hours. They work when they can, sleep in between classes, and eat at all hours.
“The rush came after those late morning classes started to get out,” Marcum said. “Around 10:30 to 11 am is when we saw the rush come in.”
This is leading to Jack’s having to adjust their hours and really relying on the public's help.
“We want your feedback,” Simpson said. “If you have suggestions on anything we need it.”
“If students want to grab a late-night snack at midnight we are going to adjust our hours to that,” Marcum said. “Students run 24/7. We are still learning and plan on adjusting as need be.”
With a week under their belt, Simpson and Marcum both have the same common sentiment to say, “We’re happy to be back”.
“I lived in Muncie for 12 years, this place means something to me,” Marcum said. “Being back is great, the location is great and the response from everyone is amazing.”
Now, a big question for Jack’s is about the local competition. Concannon's is a local bakery in Muncie and is a staple for locals, as well as Insomnia Cookies, a cookie shop located a few doors down from Jack’s.
However, Marcum and Simpson both said they are not worried.
“The more successful Jack’s has become, we focus on what we do and we don’t worry about what everyone else is doing,” Marcum said.
And Simpson said what separates them from others is that they are more than a donut shop.
“People tell stories about going to a Jack’s in their hometown or their parents taking them there when they were younger,” Simpson said. “Last Friday, there was a lady that was walking her kids to school, they stopped in and she said she’d like to make this a tradition.”
Jack’s new location can be found at 1706 W University Ave. in Muncie.
For any questions or to find a Jack’s near you, you can visit Jacksdonuts.com.
