Scooter's Coffee

Scooter's Coffee began with a single drive through kiosk in Bellevue, Nebraska, and has grown to more than 900 locations across 32 states. The brand is the second largest drive through coffee chain in the country behind Dutch Bros. Don and Linda Eckles founded the company in 1998 around a simple idea: serve fast, high quality coffee to customers on the go. Its 664 square foot kiosk format avoids traditional café seating, dining room maintenance, and large retail footprints. That allows franchisees to use smaller lots and pursue lower build out costs while preserving a premium coffee experience. Customers typically scoot in, collect their drinks, and leave in under three minutes. Scooter's Coffee operates under Boundless Enterprises, LLC. Its affiliated roasting operation, Harvest Roasting in Omaha, Nebraska, sources and roasts the specialty grade beans used throughout the system.

The United States specialty coffee industry generates more than $110 billion in annual consumer spending. Premium, handcrafted beverages continue to take a larger share of that spending. Scooter's competes with Starbucks, Dutch Bros, 7 Brew, Biggby Coffee, regional independent shops, and ready to drink coffee sold through convenience stores and grocery channels. Its model combines specialty grade coffee, drive through convenience, and operations designed around speed. Compared with cafés that require larger footprints, dining areas, and more staffing, Scooter's kiosks focus labor and space on preparing drinks for drive through customers.

A Scooter's Coffee franchise requires substantial capital. The initial franchise fee is $40,000, and the total investment ranges from $692,150 to $1,523,400 depending on the format. The compact drive through kiosk generally falls at the lower end, while larger endcap locations with more seating and capacity require greater build out investment. Franchisees also pay a $15,000 opening support fee for launch assistance. The continuing royalty is 6% of net sales, and the marketing contribution is 2% for national and regional advertising. Scooter's may increase the national marketing fund to 4% and may introduce regional marketing cooperative contributions of up to 3%. The franchise term is 10 years. Multi unit development is encouraged, with a $20,000 development agreement fee for each additional store. An owner operator structure is not required, so an investor operator can hire a trained general manager. Applicants need sufficient capital and access to financing, and the brand provides third party financing assistance to qualified applicants.

New franchisees complete approximately 23 days of training covering kiosk operations, espresso preparation, drink recipes, inventory, labor scheduling, customer service, and financial reporting. The program is intended to support owners without previous food service or coffee experience. After opening, franchisees receive field support that includes performance reviews, marketing guidance, and access to operating practices developed across the system. Harvest Roasting provides direct control over coffee sourcing and roasting. Scooter's also operates six distribution centers across the country. A new 183,000 square foot distribution center opened in Indianapolis in early 2025 and is the largest in the network. This supply chain supports product quality, distribution, and consistent availability from the source bean through final preparation in each kiosk.

Results vary by site selection, market conditions, and operating performance. The kiosk format can reduce staffing needs per shift, rent, utilities, and dining room maintenance compared with traditional cafés.

The brand opened 120 locations in 2024, a 16% increase, and added 83 stores in 2025. It reached 900 locations in early 2026 across 32 states. Scooter's ranked number 35 on Entrepreneur's Franchise 500 list, number 3 on Franchise Times' Fast & Serious ranking, and among the top 10 on Yelp's 2025 Fastest Growing Brands report. Its operating structure uses smaller real estate footprints and lower build out costs than traditional coffee shops, while Harvest Roasting provides control over the supply chain. The company has roots in Nebraska and emphasizes hospitality as it expands into the Southeast, Southwest, and East Coast. Its Chief Growth Officer has publicly targeted 1,000 stores, with additional formats under consideration, including endcap and non traditional locations.

The preferred franchisee is a growth oriented operator or investor prepared to develop multiple locations within a defined territory. Single unit applications are accepted, though commitments for two or more kiosks are more common. Scooter's values include Integrity, Love, Humility, and Courage. Franchisees must be willing to hire and develop employees who can provide fast, friendly service. Coffee and food service experience is not required, but business management experience and the ability to oversee several locations are useful. The real estate team helps identify sites with traffic, drive through access, visibility, and morning commute patterns that support peak hour sales. Standard franchise agreements do not provide exclusive territories, so applicants should assess market density and competition before planning development.

Its six distribution centers support further expansion, while the brand's unit growth and industry recognition provide context for investors evaluating a multi unit coffee business.