Get ready to see a lot more Dutch Bros.
The fast-growing drive-thru coffee chain on Thursday said it now believes there is room for more than 7,000 of its stores nationwide, up from the 4,000 it was targeting as of its 2021 IPO.
The chain, which currently has more than 1,000 locations, also set a goal to reach 2,029 units by 2029, roughly doubling its current footprint.
To put those numbers into perspective, Starbucks today has around 18,500 U.S. locations and Dunkin has about 10,000. Dutch Bros is currently the third-largest coffee chain by unit count.
To help it reach its revised development goals, the chain recently hired Brian Cahoe as chief development officer. Cahoe has spent 25 years in the restaurant industry and was most recently chief development officer for KFC U.S.
During an investor day Thursday, Dutch Bros said it believes it has runway to grow in both existing and new markets. In the 18 states where it currently operates, there could be about 3,500 total locations. That leaves about 3,500 for the rest of the country, where the Grants Pass, Oregon-based chain has seen promising results so far.
“Our confidence in our [total addressable market] is bolstered by the portability of our brand,” said CFO Joshua Guenser, according to a transcript from financial services site AlphaSense. “We have strong shop-level economics across regions as we expand.”
The chain’s recent launch of mobile ordering, as well as tests of a food menu, also added upside to Dutch Bros’ new unit-count estimate. And there is another factor playing into the revised goal: a new line of products that will be sold in grocery stores.
Announced Thursday, the licensing deal with manufacturer Trilliant Food will bring Dutch Bros coffee and other items to retail shelves for the first time. The chain believes this will help get its name out there, especially in new locales.
“The thought was to build brand awareness,” CEO Christine Barone told investors, according to the AlphaSense transcript. “The scale that we can achieve by entering the CPG market and having our brand on shelves is really going to be important as we grow and develop this brand.”
The expansion plans also reflect an impressive run of growth at Dutch Bros. Last year, total revenue rose 33%, unit count jumped by 18%, and same-store sales increased by 5.3%. That trend has continued into 2025: Through Monday, same-store sales were up 4.6% year over year, executives said.
Much of the recent growth has been driven by loyalty members, who now account for about 70% of Dutch Bros' sales. The addition of mobile ordering chainwide has also helped, as has advertising in new markets.
The performance has driven Dutch Bros stock up nearly 90% over the past 12 months, though it was down more than 3% on Friday for reasons that were not immediately clear.
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