How Dutch Bros Manages Rapid Growth? Over 525 Manager Candidates and 73% Loyalty Share

It's easy to measure a coffee chain's growth capacity solely by the number of new stores. The harder question is: Who will manage each new store, and how will customers be brought back after the opening?

U.S.-based Dutch Bros' second-quarter results for 2026 present a growth model that answers both questions simultaneously.

As of June 30, 2026, the company reached 1,225 locations. In just the second quarter, 48 new stores were opened; 44 of these are operated by the company. Dutch Bros maintains its goal of opening at least 185 new stores throughout 2026.

Additionally, the company has over 525 operator candidates ready to take over new stores.

This number indicates that growth in coffee chains is not just about the real estate pipeline but also about the leadership pipeline.

Sales are growing while customer traffic is increasing

Dutch Bros' total revenue for the second quarter increased by 32.5% year-over-year, reaching $550.9 million.

Same-store sales at company-operated stores rose by 8.3%, while the number of transactions increased by 3.4%. System-wide, same-store sales growth was 5.8%, and transaction growth was 1.7%.

This distinction is important.

In restaurants and coffee chains, same-store sales growth can sometimes come largely from price increases. However, the fact that sales growth at Dutch Bros is accompanied by positive transaction traffic indicates that the growth is not solely based on higher average checks.

The company also reports that it has recorded positive same-store sales growth for 13 consecutive quarters and positive same-store transaction growth for eight quarters.

Why might over 525 manager candidates be more important than the number of stores?

According to information shared by Restaurant Dive's CFO Josh Guenser, Dutch Bros has over 525 operator candidates ready to manage newly opened stores.

The average tenure of these candidates is about eight years. More importantly, all of the company's current operators started their careers at Dutch Bros at the "Bro-ista" level.

This model is noteworthy for rapidly growing chains.

Finding a location to open a new store, purchasing equipment, and securing financing can be done. However, it takes much longer for a store manager to learn the company culture, service speed, shift scheduling, and customer expectations.

Instead of searching for a manager after the store opens, Dutch Bros tries to mitigate this risk by creating a leadership pool before growth.

Another advantage of this approach is cultural transfer.

Hiring managers from outside can bring new ideas; however, in a chain opening hundreds of new stores, internally developed leaders can be a strong standardization tool to ensure that all stores reach the same service standard.

Opening teams go to the new market together

Dutch Bros is not just preparing the store manager.

According to Guenser, the company sends teams to the region when opening in new markets to support the training of new employees and the opening operations.

This method is particularly important in cities where the chain has not previously been present.

Hiring all employees from scratch in a new market may mean that the brand culture is conveyed only through training documents. Having experienced opening teams on the ground can help transfer service flow, product preparation, guest communication, and shift management through practical application.

In rapidly growing coffee chains, pre-opening training is therefore not just a human resources issue; it is an operational investment to preserve the customer experience.

The goal is not just more cities but more density

In its growth strategy, Dutch Bros does not prefer to spread stores over as wide an area as possible on the map.

The company also sees creating higher store density in existing markets as part of its growth.

According to Restaurant Dive, a newly opened location in Chicago has reached an annualized sales pace of approximately $7 million. Due to high demand, it is noted that customers are coming from long distances, causing queues. In such cases, the company plans to open new stores in the same area to create locations closer to customers' homes or workplaces.

This strategy may seem at first glance like it would split the sales of the existing store.

However, from the chain's perspective, the goal is not for a single store to achieve maximum sales but for the brand to become part of the daily routine.

If a customer has to travel 20 minutes to get coffee, the frequency of visits may be limited. If there are multiple stores along the same customer's route, the brand can become part of their daily consumption habits.

Second-hand drive-thru opportunities in real estate

Another aspect of Dutch Bros' growth model is the conversion of existing drive-thru locations.

The company accelerated its entry into North and South Carolina by purchasing Clutch Coffee, which had 20 stores, at the beginning of 2026. It also made an offer to buy up to 65 locations from Salad and Go, which is in bankruptcy proceedings. Restaurant Dive reports that the similarity of these locations to the small buildings and strong drive-thru structures that Dutch Bros needs is significant for the company.

Transforming an existing QSR building can shorten the opening time compared to building a store from scratch in some cases.

However, not every former drive-thru is the right location.

Traffic direction, vehicle queue capacity, visibility, ease of entry and exit, and the surrounding population profile are still decisive factors.

Therefore, second-generation real estate can accelerate growth, but it cannot replace location discipline.

73% of transactions are from loyalty members

Another high percentage in Dutch Bros' growth story is 73%.

In Q2 2026, 73% of total transactions were made by Dutch Rewards members. This same rate is confirmed in the company's earnings call.

This level shows that the loyalty program is not just a marketing tool that occasionally offers discounts.

When a large portion of transactions comes from identified customers, the company can:

• track visit frequency,

• product preferences,

• responses to campaigns,

• new product trials,

• order channels

more closely.

The real value lies not in distributing points but in making customer behavior visible.

Mobile orders reached 16%

The share of Dutch Bros' Order Ahead channel in total transaction volume also reached approximately 16% in the second quarter.

The company's store format provides an advantage here.

Dutch Bros locations have both drive-thru and walk-up windows. Mobile order customers can use this window to pick up their products independently of the drive-thru queue.

This detail is significant in terms of digital transformation.

The mobile ordering application alone does not speed up operations. It must also be designed where the order will enter the physical store's production line, where it will be held, and where the customer will pick it up.

Otherwise, the digital channel may add a burden to the existing barista line instead of generating new revenue.

In the case of Dutch Bros, digital orders and physical store design become parts of the same system.

Growth does not eliminate pressure on coffee costs

Rapid sales growth has not completely resolved cost pressures.

According to company data, in Q2, the share of labor costs in revenue at company-operated stores decreased due to the sales leverage effect, while the cost of sales increased due to high coffee costs and the spread of the new food program.

This situation illustrates the fundamental dilemma of rapidly growing coffee chains.

New stores can create more purchasing power, but in items tied to global commodity prices like coffee, scale does not always fully offset cost increases.

At the same time, new sales opportunities like food attachment can increase the average check but also bring more SKUs, cold chain, preparation, and waste management.

Thus, sales growth and operational complexity can increase together.

What lessons can be drawn for growing coffee chains in Turkey?

In Turkey, growth in coffee chains is often expressed solely by the number of new branches.

However, the example of Dutch Bros shows that scaling requires at least four separate pipelines:

Real estate pipeline: Where and in what format will the store be opened?

Leadership pipeline: Is the person ready to open and manage the new store?

Customer pipeline: Is there a loyalty mechanism to ensure the customer returns after the first visit?

Digital pipeline: Is mobile ordering truly integrated into the physical store's production and delivery flow?

If these four areas do not grow at the same pace, quality may decline as the number of branches increases.

For chains that constantly try to find store managers from outside, an internal development system is critical.

Having a visible career path from barista to shift leader and then to store manager can contribute to both employee engagement and growth capacity.

Stafflink's View

In our opinion, the most important figure in Dutch Bros' 2026 performance is not 1,225 stores but over 525 operator candidates.

Real estate can be found, financing can be secured, and coffee machines can be purchased. However, managers who will ensure that hundreds of new stores operate at the same service standard are not developed quickly.

Moreover, Dutch Bros complements this with loyalty and digital ordering infrastructure. The fact that 73% of transactions come from identified Rewards customers ensures that the new store carries not just a sign but an existing customer relationship system.

For rapidly growing coffee chains in Turkey, the main scaling metric should not just be "how many branches did we open this year?"

Healthier questions are: How many store managers are ready? Who will train the new location? Is the customer in the opened store coming back for a second visit? Does digital ordering facilitate store operations, or does it create a new queue?

Growing the number of branches can be quick. Growing the operational culture at the same pace is the real competitive advantage.