Not many Koreans would know of or have visited the coffee chain “DUTCH BROS.” As of late March 2025, it's a drive-thru-focused coffee chain operating over 1,000 stores across 18 U.S. states. It's a growing coffee chain brand that appeals to Generation Z with its unique beverages, such as energy drink beverages that other coffee brands don't offer, and visually emphasized drinks suitable for the SNS era. Although some say it's losing its initial spirit, another growth factor for Dutch Bros is its friendly service, where store employees, called “Broistas,” remember regular customers' orders, engage in short conversations, and tell jokes. This more intimate customer service, evolving from Starbucks' practice of calling out customers' names, allowed local drive-thru stores to thrive.
[Dutch Bros Rebel, a brightly colored energy drink beverage]
Dutch Bros is currently focused on growth within the U.S. market. The car-centric transportation culture, ease of securing large land plots, and extensive suburban infrastructure in the U.S. have allowed Dutch Bros to become the 4th largest coffee chain in the U.S. by store count, solely through drive-thru locations.
[Dutch Bros' U.S. drive-thru store]
Conversely, because there are few countries outside the U.S. with similar market characteristics, Dutch Bros is concentrating on robust growth in the U.S. market rather than considering overseas expansion. There are many high-growth regions within the U.S. (e.g., the South, Midwest) that are still unaddressed, and in densely populated countries like Japan, Korea, and European nations, it's challenging to secure large drive-thru locations suitable for Dutch Bros. Furthermore, the "Broista" culture mentioned earlier is unlikely to be as successful outside the U.S. market, and there's uncertainty about whether Dutch Bros' unique beverages would gain popularity elsewhere.
However, focusing on the U.S. market doesn't mean they haven't considered overseas expansion at all. After listing on Nasdaq in September 2021, Dutch Bros began actively increasing its store count within the U.S. from 2022. Since then, to prepare for overseas expansion and prevent others from preempting their trademark in key countries, they proceeded with international trademark applications. In 2022, Dutch Bros also applied trademark applications in Korea for coffee beverages, energy drinks, and cafe services.
[Dutch Bros proactively secures Korean trademark rights after IPO]
The trademark registrations were completed in December 2023 and February 2024, so it has not been three years since registration. Under trademark law, if there's no evidence of trademark use in Korea for three years or more after registration, others who wish to use the trademark can request its cancellation due to non-use. To prevent this, Dutch Bros might open a pop-up store in Korea before December 2026 to establish a record of trademark use within three years of registration. We look forward to the possibility of Korean consumers experiencing Dutch Bros through a pop-up store by the end of next year.
However, even if Dutch Bros' trademark were to be canceled due to non-use, no one other than Dutch Bros could currently own the Dutch Bros trademark in Korea. Even if someone were to cancel the trademark due to non-use, if another party attempted to apply for it, it would be rejected on the grounds of being identical or similar to the well-known U.S. ‘Dutch Bros Coffee’ among Korean consumers and traders. Trademark law aims to prevent market consumers from being confused by actual coffee from the Dutch Bros in the United States.
Indeed, in May 2020, before Dutch Bros was even listed, when it started gaining popularity in the U.S., someone attempted to preemptively register a Korean trademark for coffee beverages and coffee beans. In response to this attempt, the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) rejected it, stating that using the Korean transliteration ‘더치 브로스’ (Deochi Bros), which is substantially identical to the widely known ‘Dutch Bros Coffee’ in the U.S. among domestic consumers and traders for coffee-related goods, could cause confusion in trade as to the origin by being perceived as related to the U.S. ‘Dutch Bros Coffee’.
[Case where attempt to preempt Dutch Bros trademark was rejected]
Compared to 2020, the coffee chain 'Dutch Bros' is even more widely known in South Korea, so it would be impossible for others to secure the trademark in the coffee-related field after canceling it. Even if others tried to register the trademark in other fields to leverage Dutch Bros' fame, it would be considered an attempt to secure a well-known overseas trademark for an illegitimate purpose and would be rejected by the Korean Intellectual Property Office.
As mentioned, it's unlikely that Dutch Bros will enter the South Korean market solely with a 'drive-thru only' model. However, I believe there's a possibility they will adapt their operating model to suit the South Korean market and other overseas markets after achieving solid growth in the U.S. market. I look forward to seeing stores bearing the registered Dutch Bros trademark in South Korea in the future.
By Taekyun Chung
Patent Attorney, BLT Patent & law Firm www.BLT.kr
#DutchBros #DriveThruCoffee #GenZBrand #CoffeeChain #USCoffeeCulture #TrademarkStrategy #BrandExpansion #IPProtection #CoffeeInnovation #RebelDrink #USMarketFocus #SNSMarketing #PopUpStore #KoreanMarket #GlobalBranding
Not many Koreans would know of or have visited the coffee chain “DUTCH BROS.” As of late March 2025, it's a drive-thru-focused coffee chain operating over 1,000 stores across 18 U.S. states. It's a growing coffee chain brand that appeals to Generation Z with its unique beverages, such as energy drink beverages that other coffee brands don't offer, and visually emphasized drinks suitable for the SNS era. Although some say it's losing its initial spirit, another growth factor for Dutch Bros is its friendly service, where store employees, called “Broistas,” remember regular customers' orders, engage in short conversations, and tell jokes. This more intimate customer service, evolving from Starbucks' practice of calling out customers' names, allowed local drive-thru stores to thrive.
[Dutch Bros Rebel, a brightly colored energy drink beverage]
Dutch Bros is currently focused on growth within the U.S. market. The car-centric transportation culture, ease of securing large land plots, and extensive suburban infrastructure in the U.S. have allowed Dutch Bros to become the 4th largest coffee chain in the U.S. by store count, solely through drive-thru locations.
[Dutch Bros' U.S. drive-thru store]
Conversely, because there are few countries outside the U.S. with similar market characteristics, Dutch Bros is concentrating on robust growth in the U.S. market rather than considering overseas expansion. There are many high-growth regions within the U.S. (e.g., the South, Midwest) that are still unaddressed, and in densely populated countries like Japan, Korea, and European nations, it's challenging to secure large drive-thru locations suitable for Dutch Bros. Furthermore, the "Broista" culture mentioned earlier is unlikely to be as successful outside the U.S. market, and there's uncertainty about whether Dutch Bros' unique beverages would gain popularity elsewhere.
However, focusing on the U.S. market doesn't mean they haven't considered overseas expansion at all. After listing on Nasdaq in September 2021, Dutch Bros began actively increasing its store count within the U.S. from 2022. Since then, to prepare for overseas expansion and prevent others from preempting their trademark in key countries, they proceeded with international trademark applications. In 2022, Dutch Bros also applied trademark applications in Korea for coffee beverages, energy drinks, and cafe services.
[Dutch Bros proactively secures Korean trademark rights after IPO]
The trademark registrations were completed in December 2023 and February 2024, so it has not been three years since registration. Under trademark law, if there's no evidence of trademark use in Korea for three years or more after registration, others who wish to use the trademark can request its cancellation due to non-use. To prevent this, Dutch Bros might open a pop-up store in Korea before December 2026 to establish a record of trademark use within three years of registration. We look forward to the possibility of Korean consumers experiencing Dutch Bros through a pop-up store by the end of next year.
However, even if Dutch Bros' trademark were to be canceled due to non-use, no one other than Dutch Bros could currently own the Dutch Bros trademark in Korea. Even if someone were to cancel the trademark due to non-use, if another party attempted to apply for it, it would be rejected on the grounds of being identical or similar to the well-known U.S. ‘Dutch Bros Coffee’ among Korean consumers and traders. Trademark law aims to prevent market consumers from being confused by actual coffee from the Dutch Bros in the United States.
Indeed, in May 2020, before Dutch Bros was even listed, when it started gaining popularity in the U.S., someone attempted to preemptively register a Korean trademark for coffee beverages and coffee beans. In response to this attempt, the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) rejected it, stating that using the Korean transliteration ‘더치 브로스’ (Deochi Bros), which is substantially identical to the widely known ‘Dutch Bros Coffee’ in the U.S. among domestic consumers and traders for coffee-related goods, could cause confusion in trade as to the origin by being perceived as related to the U.S. ‘Dutch Bros Coffee’.
[Case where attempt to preempt Dutch Bros trademark was rejected]
Compared to 2020, the coffee chain 'Dutch Bros' is even more widely known in South Korea, so it would be impossible for others to secure the trademark in the coffee-related field after canceling it. Even if others tried to register the trademark in other fields to leverage Dutch Bros' fame, it would be considered an attempt to secure a well-known overseas trademark for an illegitimate purpose and would be rejected by the Korean Intellectual Property Office.
As mentioned, it's unlikely that Dutch Bros will enter the South Korean market solely with a 'drive-thru only' model. However, I believe there's a possibility they will adapt their operating model to suit the South Korean market and other overseas markets after achieving solid growth in the U.S. market. I look forward to seeing stores bearing the registered Dutch Bros trademark in South Korea in the future.
By Taekyun Chung
Patent Attorney, BLT Patent & law Firm www.BLT.kr
#DutchBros #DriveThruCoffee #GenZBrand #CoffeeChain #USCoffeeCulture #TrademarkStrategy #BrandExpansion #IPProtection #CoffeeInnovation #RebelDrink #USMarketFocus #SNSMarketing #PopUpStore #KoreanMarket #GlobalBranding