Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/1543967
26 STiR coffee and tea | 2026 Quarter 1 Spring (Mar/Apr/May) Starbucks started adding drive-thru windows to its stores in 1994, and by 2018, four out of every five locations had drive-thru options. For the first time ever in 2025, three coffee companies — Dutch Bros, 7 Brew, and Scooter's — made the top 10 in Technomic's annual America's Favorite Chain report. Photo credit: Scooters The Future of the Coffee Drive-Thru Although not as pronounced as it is in the US, the drive-thru trend has also caught on internationally. The United Kingdom saw increased consumer interest in the concept after 2020. According to Allegra World Coffee Portal's Project Café UK, the drive-thru coffee market grew 17.6% in 2023 compared to the year before. Although still domi- nated by Starbucks and Costa, higher-end brands like the bakery chain Gail's have started opening drive-thru stores, and competition has reached a point where demand for new real estate is out- stripping supply. It is a similar story in Australia, where drive- thru traffic rose 30% between 2019 and 2022. Both international chains like Starbucks and homegrown brands such as Zarraffa's Coffee have sought to capitalize on this increased demand. Zarraffa's, which has 80 stores across the country, plans to focus solely on the drive-thru concept as it looks to more than double its footprint over the next five years. Like their international counterparts, the main drive-thru-focused US coffee brands have aggres- sive expansion goals. Dutch Bros plans to almost double its store count to more than 2,000 by 2029 and hasn't ruled out further acquisitions. In Oc- tober 2025, 7 Brew signed a deal with the world's largest franchisee operator, Flynn Group, to open an additional 160 locations. Scooter's, which also operates on a franchise model, is looking to build on its solid growth over the past year, when Maddox says it grew its store count by 10%. "The future of Scooter's Coffee is bright as we continue to grow our footprint sustain- ably and are driven by the success of our franchi- sees," she says. Coffee demand continues to grow, and the scale of new drive-thru openings across the US indicates that the future is bright for this mode of coffee service. The combination of US car-dependency, coffee's centrality to many people's lives, and Gen Z's predilection for little treats means that drive-thru coffee brands will doubtless continue to thrive. As NCA's Murray puts it, "Overall, there's a coffee for every budget, taste, and lifestyle, and drive-thru provides an- other option for America's favorite beverage to fit into consumers' lives when they're on the go." As senior director of consumer research at Technomic, Robert Byrne studies the reasons behind the rapid growth in popularity of convenience coffee chains in North America. Photo credit: Robert Byrne