Bad Ass Coffee Expands via Nontraditional Venues

Expansion Leans Nontraditional

Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii opened its 47th and 48th locations in June and plans another 16 by December. The kicker, a growing slice of that pipeline sits in nontraditional venues.

The brand has roughly quadrupled its footprint over the last five years, with six nontraditional units already online and fresh momentum in Florida and along the East Coast. Datassential’s 2026 report pegs limited service restaurant coffee at $51.5 billion in systemwide sales in 2025, up nearly 5% year over year, which gives this push a strong tailwind.

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From Pilot to Core Strategy

The shift started with a reboot. Scott Snyder assembled a group of private investors to acquire Bad Ass Coffee’s assets in July 2019 and moved fast to reset growth plans.

Nontraditional locations were “not an intentional strategy” until a prospect in Lutz, Florida, proposed adding a Bad Ass Coffee inside a travel plaza alongside a Mexican restaurant concept. That pilot opened in September 2023, outperformed expectations, and revealed that Florida already hosted more Bad Ass Coffee cafes than any other state. Leaders began treating travel centers, mall kiosks, mobile trailers and embedded micro cafes as core parts of the next chapter.

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Structure, Sales and Costs

The team then put structure around it. The 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document maps a path into airports, train stations, stadiums and other high-volume venues. Nontraditional franchise units posted average sales of $313,365 in 2025 versus $782,438 at traditional cafes.

Buildout costs range from $186,700 to $915,500. Snyder pushes disciplined market entry, with a minimum development schedule of three stores and a full cafe flagship as the first unit to anchor brand awareness and operations. “We try to know as much as we can,” he said, evaluating each opportunity based on its ability to support the brand and communicate its essence without requiring a full standalone buildout.

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Pilots Prove the Model

Early wins gave the strategy oxygen. “Lo and behold, it did really well,” Snyder recalled of the Lutz travel plaza, noting its pull with loyal customers and new visitors who recognized the brand or had experienced it elsewhere.

After Lutz in September 2023, a 19,000-square-foot travel center in Kenosha, Wisconsin, opened in early 2026 and quickly became a solid performer. By embedding these formats into the 2026 FDD, the brand signaled to franchisees its readiness to navigate complex real estate and operational constraints. Since the 2019 takeover, the company has added six nontraditional units, codified criteria for each format and laid out a simple timeline: pilot, replication, and formal rollout into travel plazas, airports, malls and other venues.

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Travel Demand and Formats

The market is there for operators who can make the math and operations work. According to the Transportation Security Administration, an average of 2.48 million passengers passed through U.S. airport checkpoints per day in 2025, a record daily average. Americans also set a travel record with 904 million air trips that year.

Franchise watchers are seeing kiosks and modular units surge across nontraditional real estate, with 2026 forecasts calling for AI-enhanced, human-delivered service models in airports, hospitals, campuses and offices.

Lease Realities and Constraints

Abigail Whetstone, founder of Non Trad Consulting Group since 2017, put it plainly: “More and more, you’re seeing brands get snapped onto these travel centers or rebranded,” pointing to Naf Naf Middle Eastern Grill’s relationship with Love’s Travel Stops. She warned that leases in airports, stadiums and college campuses often demand minimum annual guarantees exceeding 20% of topline sales, restrict menus and consolidate point-of-sale systems, which can block loyalty integrations unless operators plan ahead. “Know your pillars, know your non-negotiables,” she said.

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Risks and Operational Hurdles

Even with momentum, the path is not linear. Venue RFQ cycles are finite and may not line up with brand timelines, which creates uncertainty for airport or stadium entry. Lease complexity, guaranteed rent thresholds and POS mandates can crimp menus and dilute loyalty programs.

Integration of data and technology across venue systems is still exploratory, and the duration of pilot successes needs validation in a wider set of markets. All of that argues for thorough site due diligence and an adaptable operational playbook, which aligns with Snyder’s measured approach.

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Roadmap and Timeline

What comes next is already on the calendar. Bad Ass Coffee plans its first airport concessions in 2027, plus more units in higher-end malls and partnerships with tech providers to better leverage venue data.

The International Franchise Association predicts steady growth for franchising in 2026 after a turbulent 2025, a favorable backdrop for brands with a clear playbook. With two openings in June, another 16 set by December, and a nontraditional roadmap baked into the 2026 FDD, Bad Ass Coffee looks set to turn smart pilots into a lasting pillar of expansion.