Lawton’s first Scooter’s Coffee drive-thru is enjoying a large following since its opening in late June, General Manager Michelle Verducci said.
“Everyone has been very supportive. No one’s giving up coffee so we feel fortunate,” she joked. “We opened after the first COVID surge was over and during this second surge we haven’t seen any impact since we’re a drive-thru.”
Scooter’s, 2312 W. Gore Boulevard, held a ribbon-cutting for its drive-thru Thursday, August 6, with several Lawton-Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce members in attendance.
Scooter’s offers a variety of espresso drinks, espresso blenders, ready-to-drink lattes, smoothies, breakfast sandwich options, sweet treats and other favorites such as brewed coffee, cold brew, tea, hot chocolate, chai tea latte, dirty chai and Red Bull Infusion.
“People like us because of the convenience and the quality products we offer,” Verducci said. “We have some amazing drinks, and we are so fast providing our customers with what they want.”
Scooter’s coffee beans come from 150 farms in Brazil and Costa Rica and are shipped to Dallas where they are ground into retail products used at the company’s drive-thru locations and coffeehouses.
“The blend is always the same regardless of the time of year,” said Ty Fichtner, franchise business consultant for Scooter’s Coffee.
Scooter’s Coffee only roasts from the top 10% of specialty coffee beans in the world, according to the company’s website. Scooter’s Coffee focuses on micro mills, which are small, family-operated coffee farms in Brazil and Costa Rica. Micro mills handle all coffee processing onsite, ensuring attention to detail and quality, the website shows.
Scooter’s buys directly from micro mill farmers, paying above market prices which allows the farmers to invest in their communities and businesses, according to the website.
Fichtner said Oklahoma has been good for Scooter’s Coffee.
“We have 15 in the Oklahoma City area, and this is our first one in Lawton,” he said.
It won’t be the last either. Plans are in the developmental phase to build a Scooter’s Coffeehouse in Lawton, according to Michelle Muldowney, co-owner of the Lawton drive-thru. Muldowney said she and her husband, Tyrone, are excited about the possibility of expanding the Scooter’s brand in Lawton.
“People line up for Scooter’s, and once they experience our quality, they’ll line up even more,” Muldowney said.
The Muldowneys, of Walters, currently own a Jersey Mike’s franchise and were previous owners of Bavarian Bakery and Atlanta Bread in Lawton.
Scooter’s Coffee was founded in 1998 by Don and Linda Eckles in Bellevue, Nebraska.