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Well-loved Michigan doughnut and burger chains merge. What to know
A popular doughnut chain based in Clare, Michigan, Cops and Doughnuts, will merge with Halo Burger, now based in Burton, the doughnut shop's leadership said on May 31.
The merger with Halo Burger owner and CEO Achille 'Ace' DiNello marks a new start for the restaurant chain, says Greg Rynearson, vice president of Cops and Doughnuts, who will oversee communications in the new venture.
"We were thinking of an exit plan for us... We've been at it for 17 years," Rynearson said. "We reached out looking for the perfect fit. We did not go with the best money, we went with the best fit, and that was Ace."
DiNello provides a different direction, while staying true to Clare culture, Rynearson said.
"His vision for Cops and Doughnuts aligns with ours," he added.
DiNello, who has experience in the food service industry, worked in finance, including at Quicken Loans, for years before deciding to switch career paths, accumulating several restaurants and food businesses in the process, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Rynearson says while he and the local group still hold "small minority ownership," he hopes the company continues to grow under new leadership.
Among the changes are a new Halo Burger location in Clinton Township, slated to open in June, Rynearson told the Free Press.
The bakery that became Cops and Doughnuts in Clare had been in operation since 1896. It was in danger of closing when nine members of the Clare Police Department invested and kept it operating.
In addition to the wide assortment of doughnuts, the chain serves coffee and other items at its 10 locations throughout the state.
The menu currently features glazed doughnuts, jumbo chocolate chip cookies and apple fritters, nicknamed the "Felony Fritter."
Halo Burger is one of the oldest hamburger chains in the United States, and originated in Flint in 1923, according to its website.
Originally called Kewpee, the company served its first hamburger out of a 'boxcar' style wagon on Harrison Street in downtown Flint.
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"Halo Burger not only serves up award winning burgers, we also employ about 150 people in Mid-Michigan!," DiNello's LinkedIn profile says. "Born and raised in Michigan, we value our traditions and are committed to our Midwestern legacy. Above and beyond all else, we're in the business of people and proud to be active members within our community."
The chain has several restaurants in the Flint area.
DiNello, a Michigan State University alumnus, got into food service, purchasing a pizzeria in Rochester Hills, Michigan. He bought two more pizzerias, in Birmingham, and Renee's Gourmet Pizza in Troy, then Alinosi's Spumoni Ice Cream, founded in Detroit in 1921, and Melting Moments, the ice cream provider for Michigan State University.
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He also formerly co-owned a bakery in Plymouth, Michigan, selling it when he purchased Halo Burger.
Jalen Williams is a trending reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at jawilliams1@
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Clare-based Cops and Doughnuts merges with Halo Burger
