How Dutch Bros wins with customization, connection, and speedHow Dutch Bros wins with customization, connection, and speed

While many in the restaurant industry are struggling to grapple with dwindling traffic caused by an uncertain consumer spending environment, Dutch Bros is experiencing no such lull, even outperforming major competitors. The Grants Pass, Ore.-based drive-thru coffee chain — which just passed its 1,000-store milestone earlier this month — reported a 6.9% increase in same-store sales and 35% revenue growth for the fourth quarter, ended Dec. 31.

Although much of Dutch Bros’ momentum can be attributed to store growth — with 151 stores opened in 2024 — CEO Christine Barone touted the company’s “emphasis on iced beverages, personalization, and speed,” as a large part of Dutch Bros’ continued success. Barone said customizable energy drinks have become a huge part of the company’s menu platform, as personalization becomes more important to customers.

Menu innovation (especially in iced beverages) remains a priority for the brand, and Barone said Dutch Bros will continue to improve store productivity to mitigate “mile-long lines,” especially with the growth of mobile order adoption, which has only been activated for one full quarter.

“We took our time in rolling out mobile order and really listened to feedback along the way both from our broistas and from our customers,” Barone said in an interview with Nation’s Restaurant News. “You’re not done when you've opened the shop. You have to keep listening and keep understanding, ‘How can we make this better?’ … There’s always room for improvement.”

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Since rolling out the new feature last fall, Dutch Bros customers have placed 5.4 million mobile orders, with a particular rush in the morning. The company hopes to continue to grow the morning daypart with the expansion of its (right now, fairly limited) food menu, as first reported last month.

“This initial test has been focused on understanding the optimal assortment and how an expanded food program interacts with our existing operations,” Barone said during Wednesday’s earnings call. “Although the test is small, initial signs are encouraging and point toward the viability of an expanded program ... Food makes up less than 2% of our total sales, and we are likely missing morning beverage transactions from would-be customers who are not satisfied with our current food offerings.”

Barone emphasized that it’s important to test possible food options thoroughly before rolling out a national program in order to consider the changes to the broista job description, and make sure that the company’s employees would still be productive and satisfied.

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People and customer connection are crucial to the Dutch Bros formula, and in 2024, the company improved its store-level employee turnover rate by 5%.

“Our priority is always going to be to focus on our people and to ensure that as we do roll out new things, that growth always starts with our people,” Barone said.

For the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, Dutch Bros reported revenues of $342.8 million, up nearly 35% from $254.1 million in the same quarter last year. Net income was $6.4 million or three cents per share, as compared with a loss of $3.8 million or two cents per share the same quarter the year prior.

Contact Joanna at [email protected]