BIDDEFORD — When Kelsey Quint found herself working at a job she wasn’t happy with, she started looking for a way to get out of the rut. Doughnuts became her answer.

“I knew a lot of people that knew how to make doughnuts and I knew they would teach me, and it just kind of seemed like a new, exciting thing to do,” Quint, who worked at Congdon’s Donuts in Wells throughout high school, said Tuesday. “Doughnuts aren’t that serious and they make people happy. It’s kind of a fun thing to get into.”

So in 2012, Quint, a Wells native who moved to Sanford in 2009, opened Dirty Dozen Donuts at 913 Main St. in Sanford. She was just 21 years old.

Since then, the business has become a Sanford staple, and as of this morning, the 24-year-old has opened a second location at 137 Main St. in Biddeford.

Quint said she had been considering opening another store for a while, and when she found a vacant space in the heart of Biddeford’s burgeoning downtown, she “fell in love with it.”

“I really like this area with all the new businesses going in and it seems like a fun place to be a part of, especially as it’s growing,” she said, standing on the sidewalk outside of the new Biddeford doughnut shop. “Working with the (city) has been great … everybody around here has been awesome.”

Quint said the new location is “a satellite shop” that will bring her product closer to people in the Portland area.

In other words, she will continue to make the doughnuts in Sanford, delivering fresh ones to the Biddeford shop each morning. Customers will also be able to special-order other Dirty Dozen menu items, such as scones and muffins, to be picked up at the Biddeford location, she added.

“Up here we’re trying to just keep it simple,” said Quint. “We figure start small, see what the people want – every town’s a little different – and kind of expand and basically tailor it to their needs and go from there.”

Dirty Dozen fills the space formerly occupied by Dahlia’s Delights, a vegetarian cafe that opened in 2013 after winning the Main Street Challenge, a city-led project to incentivize business growth in downtown Biddeford. Dahlia’s closed in April, after owner Jennifer Thibeau said in a Facebook post that she had experienced “major life changes.”

“It’s always good news when spaces fill quickly, demonstrating that the demand for storefronts in downtown Biddeford is really growing,” Heart of Biddeford Director Delilah Poupore said in an email Tuesday, adding that two more new businesses are slated to open on the same block as Dirty Dozen.

Although the popular Reilly’s Bakery – just a few blocks away from Dirty Dozen at 232 Main St. – has been serving up doughnuts and other baked goods in the city’s downtown for more than 100 years, Poupore suggested the competition shouldn’t be a problem.

“It won’t be the first time that there will be more than one doughnut shop in the downtown,” she said. “When new businesses have opened in recent years … they tend to draw a new clientele who want to check out the ‘new’ thing. Once downtown, these folks discover other long-time Biddeford businesses who have stuck it out and even thrived over many years.”

Daniel Stevenson, the city’s economic and community development director, said Tuesday that his office was happy to hear the news that Dirty Dozen was expanding to the city.

“It’s wonderful to have Dirty Dozen locate right on our Main Street,” he said. “We welcome that they’re expanding into Biddeford’s downtown.”

Users of the customerreview website Yelp.com have had only positive things to say about Dirty Dozen.

“Really amazing donuts and good people behind the counter! Definite ‘must try’ kind of place,” wrote Ethan G. of Dover, New Hampshire. “I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a better donut experience,” wrote Tom M. of Alfred.

Quint admits that it was risky to start her own business – especially at such a young age. But now she knows it was worth it.

“I wouldn’t trade it for the world,” she said. “I love it.”

— Staff Writer Angelo J. Verzoni can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 329 or averzoni@journaltribune.com.