Donuts, coffee and a good magazine might be reason enough to make a weekend stop. But a two-day Detroit pop-up is bringing something more to the table: a celebration of Black creativity, ownership and the kind of spaces that make people want to stay awhile.
On Saturday, Aug. 22, and Sunday, Aug. 23, Cloudy Donut, the Black-owned, 100% vegan donut company founded by Derrick Faulcon and Zewiditu Jewel, will pop up at Periodicals, the independent magazine and concept shop at 4892 Grand River Ave. in Detroit.
Detroit’s Sepia Coffee will also join the collaboration, bringing locally roasted coffee into a weekend that mixes food, publishing, design and culture.
Cloudy Donut may be new to Detroit, but the company has already built a following well beyond its Baltimore beginnings. Today, the vegan bakery has locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan and describes itself as New York City’s first 100% vegan donut shop as well as the first Black-owned food and beverage business in Brooklyn Heights and Nolita.
And these aren’t vegan donuts asking customers to grade them on a curve. Cloudy has become known for small-batch, pillowy donuts and a rotating lineup of inventive flavors.
The brand’s reach recently landed it inside another major cultural moment. Cloudy Donut was tapped as part of the celebration surrounding the 30th anniversary of Jay-Z’s landmark debut album, Reasonable Doubt.
Still, what makes this weekend’s Detroit stop interesting isn’t just who’s bringing dessert.
Faulcon and Jewel have used Cloudy Donut to push a broader idea about what a Black-owned business can look and feel like — one where food, thoughtful design, hospitality and culture aren’t separate pieces of the experience. The pair’s approach has helped the company stand apart in neighborhoods where Black business ownership has historically been less visible.
That makes Periodicals a fitting host.
Founded by Detroit native Aleiya Olu and Amani Olu, the shop is built around independent magazines and print culture, but its shelves stretch beyond reading material to include beauty products, fragrances, candles, writing tools and other carefully selected goods. It has also become a gathering place for art and cultural programming, including exhibitions featuring Detroit artists.
Sepia Coffee brings another distinctly Detroit layer to the weekend. The Black-led coffee company has centered its work on making quality coffee more accessible while building a more inclusive coffee culture, particularly for communities that have often been left out of the specialty-coffee world.
Put it all together and this isn’t simply a donut pop-up.
It’s three independent Black businesses using everyday pleasures — a warm donut, a cup of coffee, a magazine worth lingering over — as entry points into bigger conversations about creativity, entrepreneurship and belonging.
And maybe that’s part of the appeal. Supporting Black-owned businesses doesn’t always have to feel like an assignment. Sometimes it can simply look like spending a Saturday afternoon discovering something delicious, flipping through a magazine and finding yourself in a space that feels intentionally made for you.
The Cloudy Donut x Periodicals pop-up takes place Saturday, Aug. 22, and Sunday, Aug. 23, at Periodicals, 4892 Grand River Ave., Detroit. Periodicals’ regular hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday.
