Coffee Fellows Nederland

What Coffee Fellows Nederland does

Coffee Fellows Nederland is the Dutch franchise operator of the Coffee Fellows brand, a coffee shop concept originally founded in Munich in 1999 by the Tewes family. The company entered the Dutch market in 2017 with a location at NS-station Eindhoven Centraal, leveraging a strategic partnership with Nederlandse Spoorwegen, and has since expanded to more than 10 locations across cities including Amsterdam, Den Haag, Eindhoven, Enschede, Apeldoorn, Halfweg, Soest, Rilland, and Arnemuiden. The Dutch operations were acquired in 2019 by co-owners Karel van Lange and Chiel Beckmann, and the headquarters is located in Oldenzaal with a corporate team of approximately 19 employees.

The company's offering centers on a unified retail menu of high-quality coffee specialties (café crème, cappuccino, espresso, cold brew, latte macchiato), signature lightly steamed bagels, bowls, mueslis, sweets, and seasonal summer specials, supported by the registered 'Frappiato' sub-brand for frozen beverages. There is no proprietary technology platform; the core product relies on skilled baristas preparing coffee manually with portafilter machines, combined with a distinctive industrial-chic interior design using reclaimed wood, leather, and metal. The company also operates a compact BaristaBox format for smaller partner sites such as the Couwenhoekseweg location in Capelle aan den IJssel.

The business operates a dual GTM model combining direct-to-consumer retail coffee shop sales with a franchise partnership program. Franchisees pay for rights to the Coffee Fellows and Frappiato trademarks, recipes, development manuals, training, area management, and centralized marketing, while the company earns royalty and licensing revenue on top of any company-owned store sales. Strategic channel partnerships with AVIA and Achilles Brandstof Maatschappij (2021) have extended distribution into fuel-station locations, complementing the NS railway station presence. Customer segments are individual consumers seeking a 'Feel at Home' coffee experience and hospitality entrepreneurs seeking franchise opportunities; no enterprise or B2B customer concentration is evident.

Name

Coffee Fellows Nederland

Legal name

Coffee Fellows Nederland

Website

https://coffeefellows.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Coffee Fellows Nederland is a franchise operator of the German Coffee Fellows coffee shop brand in the Netherlands, operating 10+ retail locations and a BaristaBox compact format across Dutch cities, serving consumers coffee, bagels, and food while licensing the brand to franchise partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coffee Shop / Café Chain

NAICS

Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (722515)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee Chains & Franchise Cafes (THAFADAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Cafe-Bakeries (Coffee + Pastry Focus) (THAFADAG)

Keywords

• Specialty coffee retail
• Coffee shop chain
• Franchise coffee concept
• Bagel and snack cafe
• Barista beverage service

Headquarters

HQ city

Oldenzaal

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices12 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Retail Coffee and Food Sales: Revenue generated from direct sales of coffee beverages, bagels, snacks, bowls, mueslis, and sweets to consumers at physical storefront locations.
2. Franchise Fees and Royalties: Franchise partners pay for the right to use Coffee Fellows brand, trademarks ('Coffee Fellows' and 'Frappiato'), receive access to recipes, development manuals, intranet, training, area manager support, and centralized marketing. The company provides complete support including brand strategy, product development, purchasing, and logistics.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Coffee Fellows Nederland operates a chain of physical coffee shop locations in the Netherlands under a combined company-owned and franchise model, selling specialty coffee beverages, bagels, snacks, bowls, mueslis, sweets, and non-coffee drinks. The concept emphasizes hand-prepared premium coffee, signature lightly steamed bagels, and a "Feel at Home" café atmosphere, and also licenses the brand to hospitality entrepreneurs through its franchise and lease program.

Product overview

Coffee Fellows Nederland operates a coffee shop chain offering a unified retail concept centered on high-quality coffee specialties, freshly prepared bagels, snacks, bowls, mueslis, and sweets. The product portfolio consists of core menu categories (Coffee, Bagels & Snacks, Bowls & Mueslis, Sweets, Other Drinks, and seasonal Summer Specials) that are consistent across all locations. The company also offers a franchise partnership program enabling entrepreneurs to open Coffee Fellows locations, and operates a compact BaristaBox store format at partner locations. The company was founded in Germany in 1999 and entered the Dutch market in 2017, currently operating multiple locations across the Netherlands.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Frappiato: A registered trademark licensed to franchisees. Also refers to a frozen coffee beverage on the menu (Cookie Chocolate and Caramel variants).

Products and services

• Coffee (Koffie) Range of high-quality specialty coffee beverages including Café Creme, Cappuccino, Café Latte, Espresso, Espresso Macchiato, Filterkoffie, Cold Brew, Cold Brew Vanilla Latte, Latte Macchiato, Caramel/Vanilla Macchiato, and Black/White Macchiato, served to walk-in café guests.
• Bagels & Snacks Signature lightly steamed bagels in Avocado, Triple Cheese, Caprese, Salmon, Turkey, and Chicken Delight varieties, complemented by ciabattas, paninis, sandwiches, and focaccias for café guests.
• Bowls & Mueslis Health-conscious menu including Dragon Mix Bowl, Tropical Mix Bowl, Berry Mix Bowl, Berry Muesli, and Superfood Muesli, filled with healthy ingredients and extra vitamins for café guests.
• Sweets Sweet treats such as Almond Cake Caramel Peanut, Apple cake, Cheese cake, Banana bread, Seasonal cake, Marble cake, Brownies, Blueberry/Dark Chocolate/Walnut Banana/Red Velvet/Almond-Cherry/Chia Lime muffins, and White Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, and Double Chocolate cookies, sold to café guests.
• Other Drinks (Andere Dranken) Non-coffee beverages including Homemade Chai Tea Latte, American Hot Chocolate, Matcha Latte, Chai Matcha Latte, teas, fresh juices (Orange, Apple, Carrot), Powermix, Topfit, Carrot juice, Ginger shot, and Juice of the day, served to café guests.
• Summer Specials Seasonal cold and warm summer drinks such as Iced Macchiato, Iced Cappuccino, Frappiato (Cookie Chocolate, Caramel), Smoothies (Pink Dragon, Tropical), Forest Berry Energy, and Protein Coffee Shake.
• Franchise Partnership Program Franchise and lease offering for hospitality entrepreneurs that grants usage of the "Coffee Fellows" and "Frappiato" trademarks, recipes, development manuals, intranet access, training, area manager support, and centralized marketing, brand strategy, product development, purchasing, and logistics services.
• BaristaBox Compact Store Format Compact Coffee Fellows coffee shop format operated at partner locations (e.g., Capelle aan den IJssel, Couwenhoekseweg), enabling a smaller-footprint branded café presence for franchisees and host partners.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Achilles Brandstof MaatschappijcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2021Coffee Fellows Nederland started a partnership with Achilles Brandstof Maatschappij in 2021, expanding distribution to fuel station locations. This partnership allows Coffee Fellows to reach commuters and travelers at fuel station convenience locations.
• AVIAcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2021Coffee Fellows Nederland entered into a partnership with AVIA fuel station chain in 2021. The partnership enables Coffee Fellows locations at AVIA stations, such as the location in Arnemuiden (AVIA A58), expanding the brand's presence to highway and fuel stop locations.
• NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017The first Dutch Coffee Fellows opened at NS-station Eindhoven Centraal in 2017, establishing a strategic partnership with the Dutch railway system for prime train station retail locations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bagels & Beans: Dutch specialty café chain built around bagels and specialty coffee with a warm, 'home' atmosphere. Directly comparable to Coffee Fellows Nederland on geography, target customer, and bagel+coffee product mix.
• Doppio Espresso: Dutch/German specialty coffee bar chain focused on espresso quality and train-station locations. Overlaps with Coffee Fellows on the transit-channel real estate strategy and specialty-coffee positioning.
• Lot Sixty One Coffee Roasters: Amsterdam-based specialty roaster/café serving third-wave single-origin coffee and light food. Comparable on specialty positioning and Dutch urban café format, though smaller footprint.
• The Coffee Company: Dutch coffee bar chain serving handcrafted espresso-based drinks, teas and light food in neighborhood locations. Closest Dutch specialist-coffee competitor with overlapping site types and customer profile.

Broad incumbents

• McCafé (McDonald's): Mass-market espresso and coffee beverages operated inside McDonald's restaurants across the Netherlands. Competes for the same grab-and-go breakfast/coffee occasion, particularly at fuel and highway-adjacent sites like AVIA.
• Starbucks Netherlands: Global coffee chain with significant Dutch footprint in transit hubs, urban high streets and malls. Anchors the same daypart and occasion as Coffee Fellows but at much larger scale and with a more standardized offering.
• Dunkin' Netherlands: International coffee and donut chain with Dutch stores focused on takeaway coffee and sweet bakery. Comparable as a franchise-model coffee+bakery chain targeting commuters and transit locations.

Regional players

• Simon Lévelt: Long-standing Dutch specialty coffee and tea roaster with both retail shops and wholesale. Comparable via direct-trade sourcing story and Dutch heritage, though distribution-led rather than café-led.
• Espresso Bar Italia / Pjotr: Dutch independent/tiny-chain espresso bars focused on Italian-style coffee with light food. Similar neighborhood-café use case and Dutch operational context, useful as a benchmark for unit economics.

Emerging players

• Broodje Ben / Bakker Bart: Dutch bakery-café chains combining sandwiches, bagels and coffee. Adjacent in the 'coffee + light food' daypart and Dutch high-street/station channel, even if their food category runs broader than coffee.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coffee-fellows-nederland

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Coffee Fellows Nederland