Dilla’s Delights Is Crowd-Funding to Stay In Business

The future of notable downtown Detroit doughnut shop Dilla’s Delights appears to be up in the air, as the business is now crowd-sourcing funds to help it reopen.

Dilla’s Delights was closed for the month of December while owner Herman Hayes recovered from cancer. A few weeks ago, Hayes said the store would reopen January 3, although with a call-out for donations now live on GoFundMe, it’s unclear if those reopening plans have changed.

Hayes — also known as Uncle Herm — is seeking $15,000 in donations, and published a detailed explanation of how the funds would be used. Some funds are needed to cover costs that have cropped up due to the month-long closure.

Some will also be earmarked to help Dilla’s Delights move to a larger space. At present, the shop occupies a tiny location on John R Street — it’s so small that the doughnuts are produced at another location, and the business therefore pays two sets of rent and insurance.

At the time of writing, the GoFundMe was looking quite successful — it’s just a few hundred dollars short of its goal.

Hayes, a chef and baker, is the uncle of Detroit hip hop icon J Dilla, who died in 2006. He opened the tiny store in mid-2016 in the rapper’s honor, although it is not funded by J Dilla’s estate.

• Saving Dilla’s Delights Donut Shop [GoFundMe]
• Dilla’s Delights is closed for December while owner recovers from cancer [Metro Times]
• Detroit doughnut shop closes its doors — but says $15,000 could prompt reopening [DFP]