CORTLAND, NY (WIVT/WBGH) – The owner of a landmark restaurant received the Rural Small Business Owner of the Year award.
Mark Braun is the owner of Doug’s Fish Fry in Cortland and was awarded the 2024 Rural Small Business Owner of the Year award by the Upstate New York Small Business Administration.
Braun bought a Doug’s Fish Fry franchise in 1991 when he was 22 years old.
In 2007, Doug’s ToGo food trucks were introduced and the company began spreading its name throughout the region.
Braun’s daughter Tess serves as vice president of the company and his son Coby works as a cook while attending SUNY Cortland.
Tess says the Doug’s Fish Fry team is more than a team, it’s a family.
“I ran on these floors, my brother did it, my son did it now. Our parents worked in the restaurant. Our grandmother worked, now I have an aunt there. The family has been in and out for years. What my father started, the legacy is amazing. But our incredible staff have supported us, both past and present, for so many years. Through the good, the bad and the difficult,” Tess said.
Doug’s Fish Fry trucks are also used for charity events, and to date, the SBA says the business has raised more than $2 million for local charities.
The Upstate New York Rural Small Business Award is selected from nominees from the district’s 34 counties as part of National Small Business Week.