No Dutch Bros franchise is sold to new owners: the company stopped franchising in 2017, and its June 30, 2026 Form 10-Q still counts 337 franchised shops run by existing partners, out of 1,225.
Key takeaways
- Dutch Bros stopped selling franchises to people outside its system in 2008 and “decided to stop franchising altogether” in 2017, according to its September 2021 IPO prospectus.
- The franchised share of Dutch Bros shops fell from 56.1% (264 of 471) on June 30, 2021 to 27.5% (337 of 1,225) on June 30, 2026, per the company’s Q2 2026 Form 10-Q and earlier filings.
- Existing franchise partners still open shops inside their markets: 90 franchised openings from January 2021 to June 2026, against 694 company-operated openings, in the 10-K and 10-Q roll-forward tables.
- The last published terms, in the 2021 prospectus, were a $50,000 initial fee for a partner’s first and second shops, $30,000 after that, a 5% royalty and 1% to the Dutch Bros Marketing Program.
- The documented buyer of franchised shops is Dutch Bros itself: on July 27, 2026 it bought the franchise rights and assets of 31 Arizona locations from a franchisee for about $63.5 million (10-Q Note 18).
- A search of Minnesota CARDS on October 27, 2026 returned 0 Dutch Bros filings of any type, so no current disclosure document is available to review.
Does Dutch Bros sell franchises to new owners today?
No. The Dutch Bros franchise program closed to newcomers in two steps: in 2008 the company stopped selling franchises to anyone who did not come from inside its system, and in 2017 it stopped franchising altogether, according to the 2021 prospectus. Its “How do I franchise?” support page says Dutch Bros “no longer offers the option to franchise.” Franchised shops still open, but only through partners who already hold agreements.
| Question | Answer from the record | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Sells new franchises to outsiders? | No. Outsider sales ended in 2008; all new franchising ended in 2017 | 424B4 prospectus, filed Sep 16, 2021 |
| Franchised shops, June 30, 2026 | 337 of 1,225 (27.5%, our arithmetic) | Form 10-Q, filed Aug 6, 2026 |
| States with Dutch Bros shops | 25 | Form 10-Q, filed Aug 6, 2026 |
| Franchised openings, first half of 2026 | 12 (company-operated: 77) | Form 10-Q, filed Aug 6, 2026 |
| Disclosure document on file in Minnesota | None: 0 results for “Dutch Bros” and “Dutch Brothers” | Minnesota CARDS search, Oct 27, 2026 |
| SBA Franchise Directory | Listed as “Dutch Bros.”, code S0531 | SBA directory file dated Oct 15, 2026 |
| Franchised shops bought back in 2026 | 31 Arizona locations, about $63.5 million, July 27, 2026 | Form 10-Q, Note 18 |
The company FAQ adds that “moving forward, all locations are company-owned” and that regional operator positions go “exclusively to those within the company.” That sentence describes new growth, not the installed base: the 10-Q filed August 6, 2026 lists 337 franchised shops still operating. The page carries no date, so the filings are the dated record.
| Date | Milestone | Filing that states it |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Founded in Grants Pass, Oregon, by Dane and Travis Boersma | Form 10-K FY2025, Item 1 |
| 2008 | Stopped selling franchises to people from outside the system | 424B4, Business |
| 2017 | Decided to stop franchising; company-operated strategy from then on | 424B4, Business |
| Sep 2021 | IPO prospectus: 264 of 471 shops franchised (June 30, 2021) | 424B4, Risk Factors |
| Dec 2025 | FY2025 10-K: 325 of 1,136 shops franchised | Form 10-K FY2025, MD&A |
| Jan 2026 | Bought Clutch Coffee assets for $19.8 million to convert to company shops | Form 10-Q Q2 2026, Note 4 |
| Jul 2026 | Bought 31 Arizona franchised locations for about $63.5 million | Form 10-Q Q2 2026, Note 18 |
How did the company-operated and franchised shop mix move in each 10-K since the IPO?
Each annual report since the IPO moves the same way. The franchised share of the Dutch Bros system fell from 56.1% at the June 30, 2021 prospectus date to 28.6% at December 31, 2025 and 27.5% at June 30, 2026. The franchised count still rose, from 264 to 337 shops, while company-operated shops more than quadrupled, from 207 to 888.
| Period end | Filing (date filed) | Company-operated | Franchised | Total shops | Franchised share | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 30, 2021 | 424B4 (Sep 16, 2021) | 207 | 264 | 471 | 56.1% | 11 |
| Dec 31, 2021 | 10-K FY2021 (Mar 11, 2022) | 271 | 267 | 538 | 49.6% | 12 |
| Dec 31, 2022 | 10-K FY2022 (Feb 27, 2023) | 396 | 275 | 671 | 41.0% | 14 |
| Dec 31, 2023 | 10-K FY2023 (Feb 23, 2024) | 542 | 289 | 831 | 34.8% | 16 |
| Dec 31, 2024 | 10-K FY2024 (Feb 13, 2025) | 670 | 312 | 982 | 31.8% | 18 |
| Dec 31, 2025 | 10-K FY2025 (Feb 13, 2026) | 811 | 325 | 1,136 | 28.6% | 25 |
| Jun 30, 2026 | 10-Q Q2 2026 (Aug 6, 2026) | 888 | 337 | 1,225 | 27.5% | 25 |
Shop counts come from the key performance indicator roll-forward in each filing’s MD&A section; the franchised share is our arithmetic (franchised divided by total). The roll-forward tables reconcile: for 2021, 259 franchised shops at the start of the year plus 16 openings, minus 7 shops the company acquired and 1 closure, gives the 267 reported at year end.
Franchised shops went from 264 of 471 (56.1%) on June 30, 2021 to 337 of 1,225 (27.5%) on June 30, 2026. Source: Dutch Bros SEC filings, accessed 2026-10-27.
The 31 Arizona locations bought on July 27, 2026 fall after the June 30 count, so they are not in the 337. If all 31 were operating franchised shops, the franchised count would drop to 306 in the next report; the 10-Q calls them “locations” and does not say how many were open.
What has Dutch Bros said about franchising, filing by filing?
The 2017 decision is restated in every 10-K, but the wording softened. The FY2021 10-K says Dutch Bros “decided to stop franchising altogether”; by FY2023 the sentence reads “Since 2017, our focus has been a company-operated strategy.” The forecast for new shops moved from “approximately 90%” company-operated (FY2022) to “substantially all” (FY2023) to “the majority” (FY2024 and FY2025).
| Filing (date filed) | How it describes 2017 | Expected share of new shops that are company-operated |
|---|---|---|
| 424B4 (Sep 16, 2021) and 10-K FY2021 (Mar 11, 2022) | “In 2017, we decided to stop franchising altogether” | “the majority of our growth is expected to continue to come from company-operated shops” |
| 10-K FY2022 (Feb 27, 2023) | “In 2017, we shifted to a company-operated strategy” | “approximately 90% of new shops we open each year” |
| 10-K FY2023 (Feb 23, 2024) | “Since 2017, our focus has been a company-operated strategy”; 2008 sentence removed | “substantially all new shops we open each year” |
| 10-K FY2024 (Feb 13, 2025) | Same “Since 2017” sentence, plus “We currently utilize a mixed model” | “the majority of new shops we open each year” |
| 10-K FY2025 (Feb 13, 2026) | Same, with operators “recruited from within our organization” | “the majority of new shops we open each year going forward will continue to be company-operated shops” |
The “mixed model” sentence first appears in the FY2024 10-K: Dutch Bros encourages “franchisees to develop within their existing operating areas” while “developing new regions with company-operated shops.” That is the clearest statement of where a franchised shop can still open: inside a current partner’s territory, not in a new region.
The forecasts can be checked against the next year’s openings. Each row compares a stated expectation with the company-operated share of openings in the following period, using the roll-forward counts from FY2021 to June 30, 2026.
| Period | Company-operated openings | Franchised openings | Company share of openings (our arithmetic) | Expectation in the prior 10-K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | 82 | 16 | 82 / 98 = 83.7% | Prospectus: majority of growth from company shops |
| FY2022 | 120 | 13 | 120 / 133 = 90.2% | FY2021 10-K: majority of growth |
| FY2023 | 146 | 13 | 146 / 159 = 91.8% | FY2022 10-K: approximately 90% |
| FY2024 | 128 | 23 | 128 / 151 = 84.8% | FY2023 10-K: substantially all |
| FY2025 | 141 | 13 | 141 / 154 = 91.6% | FY2024 10-K: the majority |
| Jan to Jun 2026 | 77 | 12 | 77 / 89 = 86.5% | FY2025 10-K: the majority, going forward |
| Total | 694 | 90 | 694 / 784 = 88.5% |
FY2024 is the outlier: partners opened 23 shops, the most in any year since the IPO, in the year after the 10-K forecast “substantially all” company-operated openings. The next 10-K replaced “substantially all” with “the majority.”
Partners opened 90 shops and the company 694 from January 2021 to June 2026; FY2024 had the most franchised openings, 23. Source: Dutch Bros 10-K and 10-Q filings, accessed 2026-10-27.
Who still runs franchised Dutch Bros shops, and how do they grow?
The remaining Dutch Bros franchise partners are long-tenured insiders. The prospectus counted about 46 individual partners operating 264 shops on June 30, 2021, in 7 of 11 states, with average tenure above 12 years; the largest ran 23 shops. The FY2025 10-K says many partners “began their Dutch Bros journeys working in the shops as broistas.”
Partners grow by infill. Their agreements, per the prospectus, run an initial 10 years with renewal terms totalling 10 years, and development agreements typically call for 3 to 5 shops per year over an initial 3 years. The company also guarantees some partner leases, and that exposure jumped in 2024.
| Date | Lease payments Dutch Bros guaranteed for franchise partners | Filing |
|---|---|---|
| Dec 31, 2021 | About $1.7 million | 10-K FY2021 |
| Dec 31, 2022 | About $1.6 million | 10-K FY2022 |
| Dec 31, 2023 | About $1.4 million | 10-K FY2023 |
| Dec 31, 2024 | About $8.2 million | 10-K FY2024 |
| Dec 31, 2025 | About $7.8 million | 10-K FY2025 |
| Jun 30, 2026 | About $7.6 million | 10-Q Q2 2026 |
The filings do not explain the 2024 jump from $1.4 million to $8.2 million; it coincides with the 23 franchised openings that year. The FY2025 10-K and the Q2 2026 10-Q say no liability was established because any liability from the guarantees is not material.
Federal loan data shows partners still borrow. In the SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA files (as of June 30, 2026), 26 loans approved from FY2020 to June 2026 carry a Dutch Bros franchise code: 19 under 7(a) and 7 under 504. Of the 26, 23 went to businesses the lender coded as existing, 2 to startups and 1 to a change of ownership. Dutch Bros also appears in the SBA Franchise Directory as code S0531.
| SBA fiscal year | 7(a) loans | 504 loans | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | 9 | 3 | 12 |
| FY2021 | 5 | 3 | 8 |
| FY2022 | 1 (coded change of ownership) | 0 | 1 |
| FY2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FY2024 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FY2025 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FY2026 (to Jun 30) | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Counts cover SBA franchise codes S0531, 11199 and 25668, all labelled Dutch Bros in the FOIA files; 2 of the 19 7(a) approvals were later cancelled. Borrower names are left out. For comparison across coffee and beverage brands, our SBA franchise loan report tracks the same files at brand level.
What did a Dutch Bros franchise cost under the last disclosed terms?
The newest public price list for a Dutch Bros franchise is the September 2021 IPO prospectus: a $50,000 initial fee for a partner’s first and second shops, $30,000 for each later shop, a 5% royalty on franchise shop sales and 1% of sales to the Dutch Bros Marketing Program. No filing we opened states a total investment, because no franchise disclosure document is on file.
| Term | Amount stated in the 424B4 (Sep 16, 2021) |
|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee, partner’s first and second shops | $50,000 per shop |
| Initial franchise fee, subsequent shops | $30,000 per shop |
| Royalty | 5% of franchise shop sales |
| Dutch Bros Marketing Program | 1% of franchise sales |
| Local marketing and charitable causes | At least 1% of quarterly revenues |
| Development fee under a development agreement | $5,000 per assigned unit, deductible against that unit’s franchise fee |
| Term | 10 years initial, renewal terms totalling 10 years |
| Required purchases | Certain equipment, supplies and inventory from affiliates or approved suppliers; company-roasted beans |
The FY2021 10-K adds a nuance the prospectus table leaves out: royalties are “computed as a percentage of net franchise sales in most cases, and as a flat monthly fee in other cases.” No filing we opened gives the flat amount. The FY2025 10-K says initial franchise fees are recognised over the agreement term, “generally ten years.”
These terms applied to existing partners in 2021 and are not an offer. A brand that sells franchises hands buyers a disclosure document first: the 7 Brew and Swig covers both say you must receive it at least 14 calendar days before you sign or pay. Our guide to the franchise disclosure document explains the 23 Items. This page is not legal, financial or investment advice.
Is a Dutch Bros shop ever for sale, and who has been buying them?
Franchised Dutch Bros shops do change hands, and the documented buyer is Dutch Bros. The 10-K roll-forward tables record 1 franchised shop acquired in 2019, 5 in 2020, 7 in 2021 and 5 in 2022, then none in the next three years. On July 27, 2026, the company bought the franchise rights and assets of 31 Arizona locations for about $63.5 million in cash.
| Year | Franchised shops acquired by Dutch Bros | Cash paid, as disclosed | Simple average per shop (our arithmetic) | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 1 | $530,000 | $530,000 | 10-K FY2021, cash flow |
| 2020 | 5 | $5,094,000 | About $1.02 million | 10-K FY2021, cash flow |
| 2021 | 7 | $5,387,000 | About $0.77 million | 10-K FY2021, cash flow |
| 2022 | 5 | $6,051,000 | About $1.21 million | 10-K FY2022, cash flow |
| 2023 to 2025 | 0 | None shown | n/a | 10-K FY2023 to FY2025 |
| Jul 27, 2026 | 31 locations in Arizona | About $63.5 million | About $2.05 million | 10-Q Q2 2026, Note 18 |
The averages divide the cash line by the shop count and include franchise rights and other assets, so they are not a price a private buyer could expect. The 10-Q says the 2026 purchase was “funded with cash on hand” and that its purchase price allocation “is not yet finalized.” Its liquidity section lists “reacquiring existing franchised shops” next to opening company shops as a use of capital.
Private resales leave fewer traces. One SBA 7(a) loan in FY2022 under a Dutch Bros code was marked change of ownership, which lenders use for the purchase of an operating business; the data does not say who sold. The filings we opened do not describe how a partner-to-partner transfer is approved. Brand-level resale patterns are in our franchise resale report.
Which popular Dutch Bros franchise claims fail a check against the filings?
The two ranking cost pages we opened repeat three figures with no filing behind them: a $30,000 fee, a “$1,300 a month” minimum royalty and a $150,000 to $500,000 investment estimate. Checked against the 2021 prospectus and five 10-Ks, one figure is partly right, one is incomplete and one has no source at all.
| Claim, as published | What the filings say | Source |
|---|---|---|
| “Franchise fee: $30,000” (a cost guide updated March 2024; a coffee blog post from July 2026) | $50,000 for a partner’s first and second shops; $30,000 only for subsequent shops | 424B4, Description of Franchise and Development Agreements |
| Royalty of 5% or $1,300 a month, whichever is greater (same two pages) | 5% of franchise shop sales; a flat monthly fee “in other cases” with no amount given | 424B4; 10-K FY2021 revenue note |
| Investment estimate of $150,000 to $500,000 (same two pages) | No total investment appears in any filing we opened; Minnesota CARDS shows 0 Dutch Bros filings | EDGAR filings listed here; CARDS search Oct 27, 2026 |
| 470+ stores in 11 states (cost guide, March 2024) | That matches June 30, 2021 (471 shops, 11 states); June 30, 2026 shows 1,225 shops in 25 states | 424B4; 10-Q Q2 2026 |
| “All locations are company-owned” (company FAQ, undated) | 337 franchised shops at June 30, 2026; 12 franchised openings in the first half of 2026 | 10-Q Q2 2026 |
| Phoenix East Valley buyback of 29 stores (a 2026 local news report) | 31 Arizona locations, about $63.5 million, July 27, 2026; the 10-Q does not explain the difference | 10-Q Q2 2026, Note 18 |
If Dutch Bros is closed to you, what should you look at instead?
An outside buyer cannot get a Dutch Bros franchise, so the practical choice is a drive-thru beverage brand that files a current disclosure document. Two live examples: the 7 Brew franchise cost runs $940,500 to $2,283,500 per store with a 10-store commitment (FDD issued May 11, 2026), and the Swig franchise cost runs $608,400 to $1,718,000 for one unit.
| If you are… | Then… | Threshold or fact that decides it |
|---|---|---|
| A current Dutch Bros employee who wants to run shops | Ask about the internal regional operator track; there is no fee schedule to compare | Company FAQ: operator roles go “exclusively to those within the company” |
| An existing Dutch Bros franchise partner | Plan infill inside your current operating area | FY2025 10-K “mixed model”; 12 franchised openings Jan to Jun 2026 |
| An outside buyer set on Dutch Bros | Stop: no franchise is offered and no disclosure document exists to review | 0 Minnesota CARDS filings, Oct 27, 2026 |
| An outside buyer able to commit to 10 drive-thru stores | Read the 7 Brew FDD, Items 5 to 7 and 12 | $940,500 to $2,283,500 per store; $125,000 minimum development fee |
| An outside buyer who wants one unit | Read the Swig FDD, Items 5 to 7 | $608,400 to $1,718,000 single unit; 5-unit area development $766,400 to $1,876,000 |
| Hoping to buy an existing Dutch Bros shop | Expect competition from the franchisor itself | Dutch Bros bought 31 Arizona locations on July 27, 2026 |
| Brand | Open to outside franchise buyers? | Total investment stated | Commitment | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dutch Bros | No, since 2017 | None filed | n/a | 424B4; Minnesota CARDS |
| 7 Brew | Yes | $940,500 to $2,283,500 per traditional store | At least 10 stores; $35,000 fee for the first | 7 Brew FDD, issued May 11, 2026, cover |
| Swig | Yes | $608,400 to $1,718,000 (single unit) | None for one unit; 5 units under area development | Swig FDD, issued May 7, 2025, amended Oct 16, 2025, cover |
For more beverage brands, our coffee franchise statistics report compiles 11 current snack and beverage bar FDDs with a 6% median royalty, and our public franchisor unit growth report sets the Dutch Bros 10-K counts beside 38 other listed companies. A consultant who is paid by franchisors can shortlist brands; our page on what a franchise consultant does lists the questions to ask about how they are paid.
How we compiled this
We read 8 Dutch Bros SEC filings on EDGAR (the 424B4 prospectus, five 10-Ks for FY2021 to FY2025, the Q2 2026 10-Q and the August 5, 2026 8-K with its earnings exhibit), the company FAQ, a Minnesota CARDS search, the SBA Franchise Directory and the SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA files as of June 30, 2026, and the cover pages of 2 competitor FDDs, all accessed October 2026. Shares, sums and per-shop averages are our arithmetic. We excluded unit sales, average unit volume and profit figures, aggregator estimates and individual franchisee names.
Frequently asked questions
Is Dutch Bros a franchise?
Partly. Dutch Bros Inc. is a franchisor with existing franchise partners, but it no longer sells new franchises. Its June 30, 2026 Form 10-Q counts 888 company-operated and 337 franchised shops, 1,225 in total across 25 states. The franchised shops belong to partners who signed before the 2017 decision to stop franchising, and they can still open new shops inside their existing markets.
How much is a Dutch Bros franchise?
There is no current price, because Dutch Bros sells no new franchises and has no disclosure document on file in Minnesota. The last published terms, in the September 2021 IPO prospectus, were a $50,000 initial fee for a partner’s first and second shops, $30,000 for later shops, a 5% royalty and 1% of sales to the Dutch Bros Marketing Program. No filing states a total investment.
Can I buy an existing Dutch Bros shop?
The filings show Dutch Bros itself as the buyer of franchised shops: 5 in 2020, 7 in 2021, 5 in 2022 and, on July 27, 2026, the franchise rights and assets of 31 Arizona locations for about $63.5 million. One SBA 7(a) loan in FY2022 under a Dutch Bros code was marked change of ownership. The filings do not describe how a partner-to-partner transfer is approved.
Does Dutch Bros have a franchise disclosure document?
No current one is available to review. A search of the Minnesota Department of Commerce CARDS database on October 27, 2026 returned 0 filings for Dutch Bros or Dutch Brothers, while the same search returned 4 Clean FDDs for 7 Brew. Without an FDD there are no Item 7 investment tables or Item 19 disclosures to read, so the SEC filings are the main public record.
When did Dutch Bros stop franchising?
In two steps, according to the September 2021 IPO prospectus. In 2008, Dutch Bros stopped selling franchises to people who did not come from within its system. In 2017, it decided to stop franchising altogether and moved to a company-operated strategy with all operators recruited internally. Later 10-Ks rephrase this as “Since 2017, our focus has been a company-operated strategy.”
How do you become a Dutch Bros operator?
Through employment. The company’s support page says regional operator positions are offered exclusively to people within the company who have shown outstanding employment history and fit the culture, and it points applicants to careers.dutchbros.com. The FY2025 10-K says operators are recruited from within the organization, and many franchise partners began as broistas in the shops.
Sources
- Dutch Bros Inc., Prospectus (Form 424B4), filed September 16, 2021. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 10-K for fiscal year 2021, filed March 11, 2022. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 10-K for fiscal year 2022, filed February 27, 2023. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 10-K for fiscal year 2023, filed February 23, 2024. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 10-K for fiscal year 2024, filed February 13, 2025. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 10-K for fiscal year 2025, filed February 13, 2026. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, filed August 6, 2026. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros Inc., Form 8-K and Exhibit 99.1, filed August 5, 2026. SEC EDGAR. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Dutch Bros, “How do I franchise?” support article. Dutch Bros. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Franchise registrations search. Minnesota Department of Commerce CARDS. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- SBA Franchise Directory, file dated October 15, 2026. U.S. Small Business Administration. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan data, as of June 30, 2026. U.S. Small Business Administration. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- 7 Brew Franchise Disclosure Document, issued May 11, 2026, cover page. Brew Culture Franchise, LLC via Minnesota CARDS. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Swig Franchise Disclosure Document, issued May 7, 2025, as amended October 16, 2025, cover page. Swig Franchising, LLC via Minnesota CARDS. Accessed October 27, 2026.