The Second Cup

What The Second Cup does

The Second Cup is a Canadian specialty coffee retailer and franchisor founded in 1975 and headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario. The company operates a national network of participating cafés across Canada, selling coffee, specialty beverages, and food items directly to Canadian consumers. Originally TSX-listed under the ticker SCU before being delisted, The Second Cup has scaled through a franchise and participating-café model, with a stated headcount range of 1001-5000 employees. The company is co-founded by Frank O'Dea and Tom Culligan, and Serruya Private Equity is identified as an historical investor.

The company's product portfolio centers on coffee and specialty beverages, with a strategy of seasonal limited-time offerings to drive traffic. The November 2025 festive holiday menu introduced the Pacific Foods' Pistachio Non-Dairy Beverage — a plant-based, non-dairy option — making Second Cup the first national Canadian coffee house to carry it. The April 2026 Spring-Summer lineup extended the menu into eight new beverages spanning refreshers, cold brews, dirty sodas, and energy-based drinks, including Canadian dessert-inspired creations like the Nanaimo Bar Flash Brew.

The Second Cup generates revenue through one-time license fees and direct-to-consumer retail coffeehouse sales at participating cafés. Its go-to-market relies on seasonal menu launches and in-store fundraising campaigns, notably a long-standing charitable partnership with Breakfast Club of Canada that has generated $40,000 in donations through 2025 campaigns with a $25,000 goal set for the 2026 spring campaign. The company has pursued inorganic expansion, having acquired Bridgehead Coffeehouse in December 2019. No revenue figure, ownership structure, or AI/technology stack is disclosed in the available data.

Name

The Second Cup

Website

https://secondcup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The Second Cup is a Canadian specialty coffee retailer and franchisor founded in 1975, operating participating cafés across Canada that sell coffee, specialty beverages, and seasonal menu items to Canadian consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coffee Retail

NAICS

Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (722515), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee Chains & Franchise Cafes (THAFADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Espresso Bars & Coffee Bars (THAFADAD), Specialty Coffee Shops (Single-Origin, Third-Wave) (THAFADAA)

Keywords

• Specialty coffee retail
• Coffeehouse chain
• Franchised coffee shops
• Specialty beverages
• Café food service

Headquarters

HQ city

Mississauga

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Food and Beverage Sales: Revenue generated from selling coffee, beverages, and food items through company-owned and participating cafés across Canada. Seasonal limited-time offerings drive customer traffic.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

The Second Cup operates a national Canadian coffeehouse chain selling specialty coffee, espresso-based beverages, cold brews, refreshers, energy drinks, and café food items through participating cafés across Canada. The company also drives traffic through seasonal limited-time menu launches (spring-summer and holiday lineups) and plant-based non-dairy innovations such as Pacific Foods' Pistachio Non-Dairy Beverage.

Product overview

The Second Cup is a Canadian coffee house chain operating under the Second Cup Café brand. The company offers a range of coffee and specialty beverages including refreshers, cold brews, dirty sodas, and energy-based drinks. Their product portfolio includes seasonal limited-time offerings and ongoing menu items. The company has expanded into plant-based options through partnerships with brands like Pacific Foods. Key seasonal product launches include spring-summer beverage lineups and holiday menus featuring festive drinks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Coconut Grapefruit Refresher A tropical refresher beverage blending coconut and grapefruit flavors, part of the spring-summer seasonal lineup, sold to individual consumers at participating Second Cup cafés in Canada.
• Strawberry & Matcha A spring-summer limited-time beverage combining strawberry and matcha flavors, sold to individual consumers at participating Second Cup cafés.
• Dragon Peach Infuzer A dragon fruit and peach infused refresher beverage within the spring-summer seasonal offerings, sold to individual consumers at participating Second Cup cafés.
• Nanaimo Bar Flash Brew A Canadian dessert-inspired cold brew featuring Nanaimo Bar flavors, offered as a limited-time spring-summer menu item to Canadian consumers at participating Second Cup cafés.
• Pacific Foods Pistachio Non-Dairy Beverage A plant-based non-dairy milk beverage made from pistachios, offered at participating Second Cup cafés in Canada as part of the festive holiday menu, targeting consumers seeking plant-based alternatives.
• Festive Holiday Menu A limited-time seasonal holiday beverage and food menu offered at participating Second Cup cafés across Canada, featuring festive drinks and plant-based options for individual consumers.

Quantifiable outcome

• $40,000 raised for Breakfast Club of Canada through 2025 campaigns

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Pacific FoodsflagshipOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 4 November 2025Second Cup became the first national coffee house in Canada to launch Pacific Foods' Pistachio Non-Dairy Beverage, offering plant-based options to customers as part of the festive holiday menu.
• Breakfast Club of CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2023Charitable partnership supporting child nutrition through annual fundraising campaigns. Second Cup conducts national fundraising initiatives at participating cafés, with customers contributing $1 or $2 donations. Every $2 provides one breakfast to a child. Partnership began March 2023, with $40,000 raised in 2025 campaigns and $25,000 goal for 2026 spring campaign.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Tim Hortons: Canada's dominant coffee and donut QSR chain with thousands of franchised locations nationwide. Direct competitor to Second Cup for daily coffee occasions among Canadian consumers, with overlapping beverages, food, and franchise-driven distribution.
• Bridgehead Coffeehouse: Ottawa-based specialty coffee roaster and café chain acquired by Second Cup in 2019. Direct peer in Canadian specialty coffee retailing, sharing the same parent and operating in adjacent markets.
• Country Style: Canadian coffee and baked goods QSR chain primarily in Ontario, with franchised and corporate locations. Directly comparable as a domestic mid-market coffee chain competing for similar breakfast and coffee occasions.

Emerging players

• Pilot Coffee Roasters: Toronto-based specialty roaster with cafés across the Greater Toronto Area. Comparable as a Canadian specialty coffee chain focused on quality, single-origin sourcing, and urban café experience.
• JJ Bean Coffee Roasters: Vancouver-based specialty coffee roaster and café operator in Western Canada. Comparable as a Canadian single-origin/third-wave coffee chain competing for premium urban customers.
• Equator Coffee Roasters: Canadian specialty coffee roaster with retail cafés. Comparable as a domestic specialty competitor in the Canadian café market, particularly in Ontario and Western Canada.

Regional players

• Aroma Espresso Bar: Israeli-origin espresso bar chain with Canadian locations, primarily in Toronto and Ottawa. Comparable as a café concept competing for grab-and-go espresso occasions in urban Canadian markets.

Broad incumbents

• McDonald's (McCafé): Global QSR incumbent operating McCafé coffee programs across Canada. Competes for value-oriented daily coffee occasions through broad distribution and lower price points.
• Starbucks: Global premium coffee chain with significant Canadian retail presence. Competes with Second Cup for the specialty/premium coffee occasion and on seasonal beverage innovation (e.g., non-dairy, cold brew), though at a different price point and scale.

Others

• Indigo Books & Music (Café Indigo): Canadian book retailer operating in-store cafés serving specialty coffee. Comparable as a non-traditional specialty coffee retail channel in Canada targeting similar middle-market consumers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/secondcup
• Facebookfacebook.com/secondcup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/second-cup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Second Cup