Dutch Bros' paying it forward pays off

Haja Rose was happily taking orders at Dutch Bros in Cascade Square, The Dalles this morning. Her happy excited service is what makes Dutch Bros different. The Company, based in Grants Pass, is now the fifth wealthiest in Oregon after its stock went public on Wednesday, Sept. 15. And company leader Travis Boersma is not going anywhere.

Haja Rose of The Dalles is saying just what Travis Boersma wants her to. 

Rose, 18, and the Fort Dalles Rodeo Queen was taking orders at Dutch Bros. Coffee this morning, Sept. 16, at Cascade Square in The Dalles.

“It’s a great environment,” she said. “It’s super fun. Everybody loves everybody. It’s all about serving good coffee and having a good time.”

Dane and Travis Boersma in 1992. Photo Courtesy Dutch Bros website

It has been that transferable good vibe that Boersma and his Brother, Dane, founded the company on back in 1992 with a single coffee cart. And they have been able to grow that culture in 11 states and 471 coffee stands, including 153 in Oregon.

And now it looks like the company will take that to 4,000 in years to come as the Dutch Bros had an outstanding initial public offering on Wednesday, Sept. 15. 

Boersma showed up at his company’s Wall Street debut Wednesday wearing flip-flops, a backwards ballcap and a Rage Against the Machine T-shirt, according to The Oregonian.

His company’s initial public offering instantly made him one of Oregon’s wealthiest men, with a fortune valued on paper at $2.6 billion. 

Trading under the ticker symbol “BROS,” Dutch Bros’ shares surged from its $23 offering price on Wednesday, and it was at $43.71 this morning, giving the company a market value of more than $6 billion. 

It’s the biggest IPO in Oregon history and instantly makes Dutch Bros the state’s fifth-most-valuable company, with a market capitalization approaching Columbia Sportswear’s. In Wall Street’s eyes, Dutch Bros is worth more than NW Natural, Greenbrier and Schnitzer Steel, combined, according to The Oregonian. 

CCCNews’s Tom Peterson interviewed Travis and Dane in the late 1990s while working for the Grants Pass Daily Courier. His story was an attempt to understand why the company was so different. It came down to the two brothers. Their company meetings were rallies to change people’s lives with great conversation and a free coffee if someone was having a rough day. It was about karma and paying it forward for them in the beginning.

Unfortunately, Dane Boersma succumbed to Lou Gehrig’s disease in 2009.

But it is obvious Travis is carrying the same torch. 

Boersma retains a controlling stake after the public offering. Dutch Bros established an unusual corporate structure in conjunction with its IPO that gives Boersma 74% of the voting shares.

“If I can ensure, day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year, that we’re doing the right thing and we’re taking care of everybody the way that we should be, that’s paramount,” Boersma told the Oregonian Wednesday. “Having control, being able to steer the ship still, that’s worth its weight in gold to me.”