When opening a coffee franchise, picking the perfect location can make or break your business. Coffee shops and drive-thrus aren’t just for caffeine—they’re morning rituals and community hubs. Whether you’re a first-time franchisee or expanding an existing business, finding the ideal spot is critical for long-term success. In this post, we’ll walk you through best practices and critical factors to consider when scouting the perfect spot for your coffee franchise.

If you’re evaluating franchise opportunities with one or more brands, keep in mind that established franchise brands have identified key market traits, site characteristics, and demographic variables that are most likely to impact the success of your coffee shop, and will work closely with you to provide valuable guidance through the site selection process. Many franchisors will also have access to the tools, resources, and experience to help you with everything from site selection to operational excellence.

Identify and Understand Your Target Audience – Before you start scouting locations for any business, it’s important to have a clear and accurate understanding of your target customer base. Different coffee franchises cater to various demographics, so your location should align with the unique preferences and behaviors of your audience. For example, if your coffee franchise brand is focused on a younger, trendier crowd, areas near college campuses or high schools might be ideal. If your brand appeals to working professionals, a location near a business district, major highway, or office park is likely to be a better fit.

Observe Daily Traffic Patterns -Whether you’re planning to open a coffee shop, drive-thru, or a combination of both – it’s imperative to understand the local traffic patterns of your potential locations. When scouting locations, focus on areas with significant daily vehicle or foot traffic, and identify which times of day traffic is heaviest. Ideal spots for a drive-thru coffee shop are often on the side of the street with heavy rush-hour traffic in the morning, making it more convenient for commuters on their way to work, and include high-volume retail areas, public transport hubs, or intersections near highway on-ramps, and other high-traffic zones.

Consider Accessibility and Convenience – Getting a good cup of coffee shouldn’t be the most complicated part of a customer’s day. Ease of access is a top priority for any drive-thru coffee franchise since customers are more likely to stop when they can get in and out as quickly and easily as possible. Your location should provide easily accessible points of ingress and egress for vehicle traffic, and a safe route to the order window for customers on foot. Before securing a location, you’ll need to make sure the size of the lot meets any state and municipal requirements related to car count and queuing.

Scope Out The Competition – Understanding the competitive landscape of your chosen location is crucial. While having competitors nearby is common, new franchisees should assess how saturated the market is and whether there’s enough demand to support your business. For instance, a neighborhood with one or two coffee shops could be indicative of a growing demand for coffee, breaking into an area with five or six established competitors suggests the demand is being met and market saturation is a risk.

Understand the Local Economy – The economic stability of an area plays a significant role in the success or failure of a coffee franchise. Ideally, franchisees will set up shops in areas with strong, stable economic activity and an expanding population with disposable income to spend on daily luxuries like coffee and energy drinks. A growing neighborhood can be a goldmine for a coffee franchise, especially if there’s limited competition in the area. It’s helpful to investigate:

• Median household income in the area
• Average age distribution
• Local employment rates
• Daytime traffic count
• Population growth and migration trends

Depending on their size and maturity, franchise brands will often know the key market metrics that are likely to drive success based on their model and historical performance – a huge advantage for first-time coffee shop owners.

Determine Your Occupancy Costs and Long-term Affordability – Along with COGS and labor, occupancy costs – the total expenses a business incurs to operate in a physical location, including rent, property taxes, utilities, insurance, and maintenance – are typically among the highest expenses for coffee business owners. While many may be tempted to set up shop in a bustling, high-end area, it’s important to weigh the cost against your expected revenues and time to breakeven. For most coffee drive-thru franchises, average occupancy costs fall between 10% and 12% of total revenue, but depending on the market, they could drop as low as 8% or climb to 15% or more. While high-rent locations can quickly eat into profits if initial sales volumes don’t meet expectations as quickly as anticipated, there are additional factors to consider. Other considerations include:

• What are rental costs, do they fit within your budget?
• Does the lease include additional costs like maintenance or taxes?
• How stable are property values in the area?
• Will you be able to maintain profitability even if rent increases over time?

Examine Future Growth Potential – Think ahead when choosing a location. A great spot today might not be as desirable in a few years if the neighborhood’s development trends change. Look at areas through a lens of future growth potential, whether it’s an emerging district, a revitalized urban area, or a community that’s expanding due to new housing development or businesses moving in. As exciting as it can be to think you’ve found the “perfect location” for your coffee business, make sure to review with and get feedback from the franchisor. Some brands require you to receive formal approval of a site before moving forward, and while others won’t, you’ll only benefit from the expertise of a strong support team if you use it.

About Aroma Joe’s

Aroma Joe’s is a Maine-based coffee drive-thru franchise that focuses on positively impacting people through its core values of caring, passion, and commitment to excellence. With over 120 locations across Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Florida, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York, Aroma Joe’s offers franchisees one of the best support teams in franchising, a low franchise fee, varying build-out options and models, and a chance to be part of a growing brand built on genuine human interaction and positivity that stays true to its core values and mission statement.

Aroma Joe’s provides the blueprint—and guidance—to help you find the perfect location for your coffee franchise business. Learn more at https://franchising.aromajoes.com/ or fill out the form below to get started.