In 1992, two brothers – Travis and Dane Boersma – spent $12,000 on an espresso machine and a coffee cart, turned up their favorite music, and started experimenting with different coffee drinks. Some of their first sales as business owners were by the railroad tracks in the downtown area of Grants Pass, Oregon. Coming from a family of dairy farmers, Travis and Dane decided to break away from the family business but made sure to name their coffee brand in honor of their immigrant family members. Now, 30 years later, Dutch Bros and their broistas serve coffee drinks and more at locations across the U.S.
However, if you were hoping to open a Dutch Bros franchise, you’re out of luck. Fortunately, there are other well-established and highly profitable options out there. Discover other viable coffee franchise investment options.
In short, you can’t. Dutch Bros opened their first franchise location in 2000. By 2008, the brand switched to an internal growth model, where according to the Dutch Bros franchise requirements, candidates needed to have worked for the brand for at least three years before owning a store. By 2017, the brand had decided to stop selling franchises all together. The coffee chain now operates over 600 locations in 14 states across the country. Many of those locations are franchises, but Dutch Bros only opens company-owned locations now.
And while there are many coffee franchises that do still sell single- and multi-unit agreements to investors, Dutch Bros ultimately decided to buy out franchisees that weren’t meeting their customer service expectations. This strategy was a means of protecting the brand’s culture of “practicing love and humility.” Co-founder and CEO Travis Boersma once explained to Forbes magazine that Dutch Bros doesn’t “tolerate toxic or cancerous behavior to the culture.”
If you really had your heart set on investing with Dutch Bros, there is the option to purchase stock (BROS) at approximately $30 a share – but that’s the only way in which you could invest in the brand at this time.
There are many other coffee chains to offer franchise opportunities to new and seasoned entrepreneurs. With the proper business model, training, and support, many large brands have continued their expansion thanks to partnering with dedicated franchisees.
A rapidly growing drive-thru coffee franchise is Scooter’s Coffee®. Our brand got its start back in 1998 when our founders, Don and Linda Eckles, opened the first Scooter’s Coffee location in California. Three years later, we started franchising to meet the demand of enthusiastic investors and to see how far our concept could grow. Now, our brand has over 500 locations across 33 states with many more drive-thru coffee kiosks in development.
Interested franchise candidates should have previous business experience, a desire to succeed, strong entrepreneurial spirit, and be committed to providing top-notch service aligned with our core values: integrity, love, humility, and courage. From there, our team of industry professionals will guide you through the entire process of opening your coffee kiosk location. From site selection all the way through to your grand opening and beyond, we’re readily available for any questions you or your team may have. We’re passionate about our franchisees’ success – because when they succeed, we all do.
At Scooter’s Coffee, we’re committed to excellence. In 2022, we were ranked on Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500 list at No. 66. We were also included on the publication’s Fastest-Growing Franchise list at No. 55. Scooter’s Coffee was also included on the Inc. 5000 coming in at No. 2,807.
Our franchise requires candidates to have at least $200,000 in liquid capital and a net worth of $500,000. Our initial startup costs range between $794,000 and $1,264,500, which includes our franchise fee of $40,000.
To learn more about our franchise opportunity, fill out this form, and one of our representatives will be in touch.
