BEND, OR -- Cafe2U, a mobile gourmet coffee and food franchise that started in Australia, reports that it has established a coast-to-coast presence during its first year in the United States, with vans on the road in California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia and Oregon.
Cafe2U puts a full specialty coffee shop inside its vans. The back doors open to reveal a $7,000 espresso machine and $1,000 grinder that produce coffeehouse-quality drinks. The side door opens to a refrigerator full of milk for espresso drinks, gourmet food items, snacks, sodas and energy drinks. The vans follow a Monday-through-Friday route that allows them to serve as a coffee shop for dozens of businesses each day.
The mobile catering concept got its start in Australia in 2000 and started franchising in 2005. Two hundred franchises operate in Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa, Germany and the U.S.
Cafe2U USA president and chief executive Scott Bundy, based in Bend, OR, said he expects to open 12 more franchises in 2013 and believes the American coffee market will support 1,000.
