Dutch Bros Coffee history

Sound like a cult? " 'Cult' is just 'culture' minus three letters," says Josh Kimzey, 33, who's worked for Dutch Bros. since 1999.

The expansion started in Oregon when the first franchise opened in 2000, then quickly spread across the northwest.

By 2004 the brothers had franchised more than 50 drive-throughs, when they were blindsided on two fronts.

Drink One for Dane started in 2007 in honor of co-founder Dane Boersma, following his diagnosis with ALS. Today, Dutch Bros dedicates a day in May each year to raise funds for the Muscular Dystrophy Association to #EndALS.

Since 2008 Dutch Bros. has stuck to a policy that, according to longtime franchise consultant Ed Teixeira, author of The Franchise Buyer's Manual , is unheard of among major American franchisors.

The company's mantra is to "make a difference, one cup at a time". Every year the company holds its annual Drink one for Dane fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association in honor of the co-founder Dane Boersma, who died of Lou Gehrig's disease in 2009 at the age of 55.

Travis was featured on the American version of the television show Undercover Boss in 2013.

In 2016, Dutch Bros broistas went viral for supporting a customer.

They originally sold coffee from pushcarts around town and, by 2018, had more than 300 coffee stands in seven Western states with the majority being drive-thrus and a few walk-ins.

In 2019, Dutch Bros broistas made headlines again when they banded together during a company event to Venmo enough money to another broista to help her attend college.

The company began an expansion into the Southern United States starting in 2020 with locations opening in Oklahoma and Texas.