When Dutch Bros debuted its first coffee shop last month in California's Orange County, throngs of people were waiting. Some had arrived the night before, and others traveled from as far as Arizona for the grand opening that morning.

The line to get served "stretched for more than a mile," Christine Barone, the chain's CEO, said during the company's call to discuss its fourth-quarter earnings.

"What I find remarkable is that after 32 years and over 800 shops, a shop can open with such excitement," she said, adding that the site generated more than $90,000 in sales during its three-day opening weekend in the Los Angeles suburb of Fountain Valley.

Dutch Bros, a Grants Pass, Oregon-based chain known for customers' brand loyalty and its cult status, plans to open 150 to 165 locations this year. That expansion will take it to the East Coast for the first time, with its first location in Florida, in greater Orlando, just debuting. The chain also plans to spend up to $41 million to move 40% of its corporate support staff to Arizona from Oregon by Jan. 1 next year, placing them closer to more shops and enhancing its ability to attract top-notch employees.

For the real estate industry, Dutch Bros also bears watching because it's one of the biggest occupiers of small retail spaces in the United States. It ranked fourth last year behind Wingstop, Starbucks and Yum Brands, operator of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, among retailers that leased spaces of 2,500 square feet or less, according to CoStar analysis. Over two-thirds of retail leasing activity in the country is for spaces less than 5,000 square feet, CoStar data shows.

Now Dutch Bros is attempting to nip at the heels, and expand into the national turf, of the two much larger U.S. coffee-shop chains: fellow Pacific Northwest company Starbucks, based in Seattle, and Canton, Massachusetts-based Dunkin’. Nation’s Restaurant News ranked Dutch Bros at No. 3 among U.S. coffee and bakery chains, behind No. 2 Dunkin' and No. 1 Starbucks, based on U.S. sales. The competitive caffeine circuit has many other players, as well, with smaller regional chains such as Aroma Joe’s, Peet’s Coffee, the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, and Philz Coffee.

Dutch Bros operates drive-thrus and walk-up sites concentrated on the West Coast, mainly in Oregon and California, with a large cluster in Texas. As of the end of last year, the chain had 831 locations across 16 states. Its goal is to have 1,000 by 2025, and long term to have 4,000 locations. It opened 159 last year, with 37 of those in the fourth quarter.

Still, Starbucks and Dunkin’s footprints dwarf Dutch Bros. Starbucks has about 16,400 U.S. locations. Dunkin’ has just over 9,000 U.S. coffee shops.

The chain has come a long way since brothers Dane and Travis Boersma founded Dutch Bros in 1992, starting the business with an espresso machine and pushcart in Grants Pass. In the fourth quarter its revenue rose almost 26% to $254.1 million from the year-earlier quarter, while its net loss widened to $3.8 million from $2.8 million. When a company is in growth mode, Wall Street analysts often deem some losses acceptable when revenue climbs.

For all of 2023, Dutch Bros total revenue rose 30.7% to $965.8 million with net income of $10 million — compared to a $19.3 million loss for 2022.

And that's not the only good news for the chain. Visits to Dutch Bros locations keep increasing, according to a recent report by data firm Placer.ai.

“Dutch Bros has impressed with its foot traffic growth over the past few years,” Placer.ai said. “Analyzing the change in monthly visits to the chain since 2019 reveals near-constant growth over the past few years — a noteworthy feat considering the challenges facing the space over COVID and during the recent inflation. And while some of Dutch Bros visit increase is likely due to its expanding store fleet, the consistency and magnitude of the growth suggests that the chain is keeping its new customers coming back.”

The chain posted consistent year-over-year visit gains for the past 13 months, according to Placer.ai.

“In January 2024 visits to Dutch Bros were 10% higher than in January 2023," the firm reported. Overall industry visited year over year "decreased by 2.7% during the same period.”

The data also shows that as of January this year, visits to Dutch Bros have increased almost 153% compared to five years ago, a January 2019 baseline. Placer.ai’s report said Dutch Bros is performing particularly well in suburban areas, in large part due to its drive-thru designs and store layouts. The chain plans to take some so-called endcap drive-thrus, rather than freestanding sites, to bring down the cost of opening new shops, according to company.

Dutch Bros has at least a half-dozen sites planned for Florida, according to local media reports. The first one debuted at 2800 Jacks Road in Davenport, while the company’s website lists three other locations in Florida as coming: 50 McCoy Way in St. Augustine; 104 S. Semoran Blvd. in Winter Park; and 3064 S. Highway 27 in Clermont. And in California’s Orange County, in addition to Fountain Valley one is coming to La Habra.

The relocation of some corporate operations will help Dutch Bros in several respects, according to Barone.

“We recognize the importance of continuing to attract top notch talent and we believe adding a significant presence in the Phoenix market positions us to better compete for this talent,” she said on the earnings call. “We also believe this expansion will enable easier access to our operations as we grow across the United States.”

The company anticipates incurring charges of $24 million to $31 million in consulting fees and severance or relocation assistance for employees affected by the move, according to a Dutch Bros securities filing.

The company also expects capital expenditures of $6 million to $10 million for the relocation. The company recently opened a small office in Scottsdale near Phoenix at 6320 E. Thomas Road, and is looking for office space for the expanded operations in the Valley of the Sun, according to the Phoenix Business Journal.