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For Ziggi’s Coffee, growing a national brand starts at home, with the franchisees serving their communities every day. With 120 stores open across 25 states and more than 200 additional locations in development, the Colorado-born drive-thru brand is focused not only on where it grows next, but on building a system designed to help existing operators grow with it. A creative, wide-ranging menu, a steady stream of new reasons to visit and a deep bench of experienced people all support that goal. Supporting existing stores matters as much as opening new ones.
Founded in 2004 in Longmont, Colorado, by Brandon and Camrin Knudsen, Ziggi’s Coffee began franchising in 2016. From the start, the brand has paired drive-thru convenience with a menu broad enough to make one stop work for everyone in the car. Espresso classics sit alongside smoothies, blended drinks, dirty sodas, chai, matcha, food and a dedicated kidZone menu, and nearly every drink can be customized.
That range gives the brand room to experiment, while strategic partnerships with recognizable brands have created new opportunities to put Ziggi’s menu innovation in front of larger audiences. The Gold Rush Cold Brew, a longtime Ziggi’s menu favorite made with cold brew, half-and-half and caramel, took on a new spotlight this year through a collaboration with Discovery Channel’s Gold Rush. In April, Ziggi’s Coffee celebrated the show’s Season 16 finale with a one-day promotion featuring the drink and limited-edition Gold Rush bumper stickers for guests.
In August, Ziggi’s Coffee teamed up with Kraft Heinz’s Philadelphia Cream Cheese on the Philadelphia Everything Bagel Latte, the brand’s first-ever savory latte. The iced latte, topped with Philadelphia cream cheese cold foam and a sprinkle of everything bagel seasoning, turned a classic breakfast pairing into something guests had never seen at a drive-thru, and it drew national attention for both brands. Those collaborations build on earlier hits like the 2025 Mike’s Hot Honey Latte, a first for the larger-scale coffee world.
A steady cadence of limited-time offerings gives regulars something new to try every season while giving stores fresh reasons to engage guests throughout the year. This fall, Ziggi’s built on its returning pumpkin favorites with new formats and toppings, including a Pumpkin Pie Shaken Espresso, seasonal cold foams and a caffeine-free Lil’ Frozen Pumpkin Pie Blender for kids.
“For us, perfecting pumpkin meant finding the right balance of pumpkin, sweetness and spice,” says Dani Wanner, vice president of operations and product development at Ziggi’s Coffee.
The brand’s recent Halloween Bucket promotion is another example of how Ziggi’s creates timely, family-friendly reasons to visit beyond traditional seasonal beverages. The limited-time collectible gave guests a new way to make Ziggi’s part of their Halloween traditions.
Longer-term innovation work focuses on flavor, food, functional beverages and partnerships, with each new item tested against what it can do for both guests and store operations. The strategy is designed to create more reasons for guests to return while ensuring new ideas can be executed effectively across the franchise system.
“The goal is more reasons for a customer to return each week, which is a store-economics lever as much as a marketing one,” says CEO Brandon Knudsen.
Behind the menu is a team of franchise, restaurant and drive-thru veterans whose experience spans operations, product development, training, marketing and new-store development. Wanner pairs menu innovation with day-to-day operations, so new products are built to work efficiently within a drive-thru operation.
Ziggi’s is also committed to bringing in experienced talent and outside perspectives that can help strengthen the brand and support its continued growth. As one example, the company works with consultant Darren Spicer, founder of Clutch Coffee Bar, who grew Clutch from one location to more than a dozen before Dutch Bros acquired the chain. Spicer works behind the scenes alongside the Ziggi’s team, bringing his hands-on drive-thru experience to areas including store performance, training, local marketing and new-store development.
The marketing team is also putting greater emphasis on giving franchisees the resources to attract and retain local customers. Franchise owners receive hands-on manager training, on-site opening help and marketing support that continues well beyond the grand opening.
Knudsen says drawing from experienced operators is part of building a system that supports franchisees for the long term. “Every addition we make is measured against whether it makes an operator’s store run better,” he says.
That support has a purpose beyond the store. When operations run smoothly and the menu keeps guests coming back, franchisees are better positioned to do what local owners do best: hire from their neighborhoods, show up for schools and community events, and become a familiar part of their customers’ daily routines.
More than 20 years after the first Ziggi’s Coffee opened in Colorado, the brand’s purpose remains the same: bring a little joy to the everyday. With a creative menu, a steady flow of new flavors and a seasoned team behind every store, Ziggi’s Coffee is carrying that promise into its next decade of franchise growth, one neighborhood at a time.
Ready to brew up success with Ziggi’s Coffee in a neighborhood near you? Get started at ziggiscoffee.com/franchise.
There's nothing quite like the perfect cup of coffee. It wakes you up and gets you on the right path. Now, you've got the chance to build a lifestyle and future around that perfect cup. That perfect cup of coffee is now the perfect franchise.
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