From 1972 To Today: The Rienerth Family Story
By EMILY CANNING-DEAN
Special To MedinaCountyLIVE.com
BRUNSWICK – When Bill Rienerth first opened Donut Land in Brunswick in 1972, many people told him it wasn’t a wise decision.
“A lot of people told him he wouldn’t be able to successfully run a donut shop in such a small spot and a small town like Brunswick,” Rienerth’s granddaughter, Amanda said. “He had recently moved out here to Brunswick from Cleveland. At that time, Center Road was just a two-lane road covered with trees.”
“…A lot of people told him he wouldn’t be able to successfully run a donut shop in such a small spot…”
But Rienerth’s passion for baking donuts made him ignore all the naysayers and he set up shop at 1321 Pearl Road, opening Donut Land in January of 1972.
“He had started baking donuts at Mister Donut when he was 18 and worked there for several years, but was interested in opening his own spot,” Amanda said. “It ran in the family because his mother was a baker at the old Huff Bakery in downtown Cleveland.”
Founder Bill Rienerth opened Donut Land in 1972 with a passion for family and community. For decades, his Pearl Road retail donut shop reflected the heartbeat of the town, and the voices of his many customers.
Donut Land builds a foundation through the years
When Rienerth first set up shop on Pearl Road, the Donut Land space was a free-standing building with floor to ceiling windows.
“After about a year or two in business, he put up a brick wall and eventually the owner of the property connected the buildings to make a strip mall,” Amanda said. “He had two opportunities over the years to purchase the strip mall. I think later, he looked at that as a missed opportunity where he could have owned his building instead of leasing all these years.”
An early image of Donut Land from 1972 showing its original diamond-shaped signage and full glass facade. Over the years, Bill Rienerth would retain a contractor to perform renovations and secure the exterior of the building.
In 2019, illness requires the family to add more support
While Amanda would occasionally help out at Donut Land as a teenager, she never saw herself taking over the business.
“My grandpa knew I wanted to go to nursing school, so he never taught me how to bake,” she said. “I didn’t end up becoming a nurse, but I worked as a program director for a company that helped people with disabilities, and I did that for about 20 years.”
By 2019, Amanda’s grandmother became sick and Rienerth himself had been battling cancer for roughly 10 years. He knew he wouldn’t be able to continue running the business for long.
“Originally he had planned to leave the business to my dad, but he wasn’t in the position to take over, so he reached out to me to see if I would be interested,” she said. “At first, I kept my full-time job and was working there Monday through Friday and I worked at Donut Land on the weekends. But after a month or two and getting a feel for the place, I left my other job and didn’t look back.”
“we had a lot of people mention they wished we were once again open 24 hours…”
After taking the reins, Amanda did an overhaul on Donut Land’s website and social media.
“At the time there were two different websites and two different Facebook pages,” said Amanda. “I took some time to get that organized and straightened out. When things were really taking off on social media, we had a lot of people mention they wished we were once again open 24 hours.”
An interior photo of the donut shop in 2021 before its most recent renovation. The open counter and stool seats for which Donut Land was known are hoping to make a revival in the new Center Road building in 2026.
Donut Land gains notoriety - open 24 hours during pandemic
After an outpouring of support for Donut Land going back to 24 hours, Amanda decided she could handle working overnights at the shop until she found some additional employees.
“As soon as we opened for 24 hours, the next day the COVID announcement took place,” she said. “So, we had to close the next night. All the restaurants shut down. We ended up getting permission from the city to stay open if we didn’t allow dine-in. Since the majority of our business was carry-out, that was something we could easily do.”
As one of the few businesses in the area open 24 hours, Donut Land gained some popular notoriety during the pandemic. The shop partnered with the nearby Ohio Pie Co. during the beginning of the pandemic, offering displaced workers a free pizza and half a dozen donuts.
“The first week, we offered the deal to displaced workers in general, then another week we offered it to healthcare workers,” Amanda said. “We did this for three or four weeks in a row and it was a good thing but also really helped with our exposure.”
After gaining this notoriety, Donut Land went viral on platforms like TikTok and Amanda said she heard from people who had fond memories of Donut Land but had moved out of town.
“We actually had one gentleman who had moved out of town reach out to us because he wanted us to ship two of our nut rolls to him so he could surprise his wife for their anniversary,” she said.
Founder Bill Rienerth passes in 2021
Rienerth passed away in 2021, but he spent the last 10 months of his life living with Amanda.
“This gave us a lot of time to talk about his dreams and wishes and discuss both the past and future of Donut Land,” Amanda said.
While the two discussed the possibility of opening a second location, they ultimately decided the best course of action would be to update the equipment at the current location and either expand the building on Pearl Road or look for a new and bigger location.
Shortly after Rienerth passed away, Amanda got to work remodeling the current space, updating equipment and putting in new floors and ceilings, new electric and a new water heater.
“We ended up closing for three weeks in August of 2021 to do the full remodel,” she said.
To help fund the remodel, Donut Land created a special drawing and prizes for customers who were willing to contribute financially. Customers who sponsored $25 received one entry into the drawing and a free dozen donuts. Customers who sponsored $50 received two entries into the drawing, a free dozen donuts and a Donut Land T-shirt. Sponsors who donated $100 received four drawing entries plus the T-shirt, a $25 gift card and a dozen donuts.
“We gave away several gift cards through the drawing, and the grand prize winner received a free dozen donuts every week for a year,” Amanda said.
Donut Land Owner Amanda Rienerth explores the company’s new 2026 location on Center Road in Brunswick. Daughters Abriana and Malorie represent the fourth generation of family members to work at building this retail enterprise.
A new location and a new generation for the donut team
Since taking over the business, Amanda said hearing from longtime customers and friends of her grandfather has ignited her passion for Donut Land.
“I talk to people who remember coming to Donut Land as a kid and now they are bringing their kids here,” she said. “My grandfather had a lot of regulars who became good buddies and when I talk to them about plans for Donut Land and see their excitement, it feels like I’m talking to my grandfather.”
Amanda added the next generation of her family is already part of Donut Land as her daughters, Malorie and Abriana Kurilec are both involved at the shop.
“Malorie has a career as a nail tech, but she helps me out with social media and always helps out during big holidays,” she said. “Abriana has worked at Donut Land since she was 13. She went through the culinary program at the Medina County Career Center and is now my assistant manager.”
Donut Land
History Timeline
- 1972 – Founder Bill Rienerth opens Donut Land, a small retail shop at 1321 Pearl Road in Brunswick.
- 2019 – Illness impacts family, and Amanda Rienerth makes career change – expands work at donut shop.
- 2020 – Covid grows Donut Land popularity as it opens 24-hours to serve community.
- 2021 – “Mr. Bill” Rienerth passes from cancer – company establishes founders day.
- 2022 – Amanda expands digital, social media footprint. Donut Land visibility and customer base expands.
- 2025 – Company growth increases need for space; new business location.
- 2026 – Acquires former Rite Aid building on Center Road; begins redevelopment of property.
- 2026 – June/July – Anticipated relocation to the new home of Donut Land.
LIVE Talk: Amanda Rienerth Talks Donut Land's History & Future
AUDIO FEATURE:
Amanda Rienerth / Emily Canning-Dean
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