Women Owned Coffee Businesses Reshape Specialty Coffee
Texas Coffee School Celebrates Women Owned Coffee Businesses
Every March, we celebrate Women’s History Month and the women in our industry driving growth and evolution. This year, the impact women are making in specialty coffee feels especially tangible.
Despite hurdles that have made ownership and leadership challenging, the numbers of women opening coffee businesses are surging. We see this in the data, and we see this in our classroom.
Below, we walk through this surge. And, we highlight some of the individual graduates who bring this data to life.
Our featured image showcases TCS graduate Elizabeth Eastabrook, Owner of Lady Sunshine Coffee. Read her full story.
Women’s Entrepreneurship By the Numbers
Throughout the country, women are starting businesses at an unprecedented rate. The specialty coffee industry is no exception. Here, we walk through the data that showcases the surge in women’s business ownership and coffee influence.
Women’s business ownership in the US:
- In 2019, women launched nearly 29% of new businesses in the United States. By 2024, that figure had climbed to nearly half, 49%, the highest share on record.
- The number of women-owned businesses grew almost twice as fast as the number of men-owned businesses from 2022-2025, according to Wells Fargo’s 2025 Impact of Women-Owned Businesses report.
- Today, women own 40.6% of all U.S. enterprises, employ 12.6 million people, and generate over $2.8 trillion in annual revenue.
Women’s Impact In Coffee Businesses
In the coffee world specifically, the trend mirrors this broader surge in women owned businesses. It also reflects a trend we’ve seen in our classroom in recent years.
- The percentage of women-owned coffee shops has increased by 12% over the last five years, and this is within a booming industry.*
- Women are also disproportionately motivated by passion when they start coffee shops. According to Guidant Financial’s 2024 research, the top reasons women cited for starting a business were being their own boss (27%), leaving corporate America (23%), and pursuing a passion (18%).
- Women are outpacing men in our own classroom. In 2025, of the 80+ coffee shops our graduates opened in 2025, women opened more than 55%.
*The number of coffee shops in the U.S. has surpassed 40,000, up 7% from pre-pandemic levels, with the market valued at $54 billion in 2024 and projected to reach $72 billion by 2028.
Veronica Ratcliff, Owner of Odd Roots Coffee. Read her full story.
Why It Matters: Women Leading the Way in Coffee
Women have always played a central role in specialty coffee’s production. They perform an estimated 70% of physical labor on coffee farms worldwide. However, women have historically been shut out of the ownership, leadership, and decision-making within the industry. The surge of women owned coffee businesses is a correction, not a trend.
Another notable factor about this moment is the “why” behind these women entrepreneurs. Just look at the most common reasons women cited for starting a business in 2024:
- Autonomy
- Escaping corporate structures
- Pursuing a passion
These drivers lead women to build creative, connective, unique coffee shop concepts. (We share a list from our own graduates below.) These spaces are fulfilling to the owners, but they’re also resonating with consumers, especially young consumers who tend to connect with mission-driven and independently owned businesses.
Plus, what better businesses for these three motives than coffee shops? Think about it. They’re technical enough to offer a challenge and growth potential, human enough to allow for true connection, and community-driven in a way that passion can flourish.
That’s precisely why education matters so much in this space. At Texas Coffee School, we see this play out in our own graduates. Women who arrive with a dream and leave with the knowledge and business foundations to act on it. They are part of a generation shaping the next era of specialty coffee.
Ameira Olayan and Fadia Anani, Owners of Bagelology. Read the full story.
Women Owned Coffee Businesses from Graduates
Hundreds of women from around the world have come into our classroom. Now, they own and operate thriving coffee shops with unique concepts. Here are a few of their stories:
East Dallas Middle Ground
Owner: Tiffani Kocsis
A former educator with a doctorate degree, Tiffani left 20 years in education to build the neighborhood coffee experience East Dallas was missing. The shop is hyper-local by design, sourcing from and partnering with local vendors. It features private work rooms and family-friendly offerings to serve the community’s work-from-home parents and young families.
Pan Pan Bakery and Cafe
Owner: Laura Molinar Location:
Dalworthington Gardens, Arlington, Texas
At just 21 years old, Laura opened Pan Pan in August 2024, quickly going viral on TikTok and drawing two-hour lines out the door. Her Mexican-Japanese fusion cafe has become one of TCS’s most talked-about recent success stories and a prime example of how Gen Z is reshaping the coffee shop landscape.
Drip N’ Sip Coffee
Owner: Melanie King
Location: Hampton, Virginia
A real estate professional and mom, Melanie opened Drip N’ Sip as a tribute to her late brother, channeling 90s nostalgia throughout the shop. The business is a deeply personal project that transformed loss into a community joyful gathering place.
River Mill Coffee Company
Owners: Heather Veik & Rachael Barlow
Location: Neligh, Nebraska
Two former teachers who quit their jobs, bought a charming old building, and built a specialty coffee shop from the ground up in rural Nebraska. River Mill fills a real community need in a small town that lacked gathering spaces, and has earned recognition including the 2023 Entrepreneur Award from the Center for Rural Affairs.
District Coffee
Owners: Amie Danielson & Molly Windfeldt
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota
Amie and Molly have built a standout shop known for custom syrups, a creative seasonal menu, and branded merchandise. Their approach to community and consistency has made District Coffee a TCS success story worth studying for any aspiring coffee shop owner.
Sit & Sip with ME
Owner: Marta Alonzo
Location: San Antonio, Texas
After working for someone else for nearly four decades, Marta secured local business funding, wrote a detailed business plan, and opened her own coffee shop directly across from Mission San José. Her prime location places her in front of 1.3 million tourists and a steady stream of cyclists and pedestrians on the World Heritage Trail.
Mothers House
Owner: Brieana Jones
Location: Oak Lawn, Dallas, Texas
Brieana launched a creative hybrid model: a tattoo parlor and specialty coffee shop housed in a vintage Dallas building. The dual-business concept makes Mothers House a cozy, welcoming alternative to the typical tattoo shop experience, drawing in guests for both ink and a great cup of coffee.
Melanie King, Drip N Sip Owner, with Texas Coffee School Team
Open Your Woman Owned Coffee Shop with Texas Coffee School
Autonomy, passion, a fresh start? Join these graduates an hundreds of other when you start your entrepreneur journey here. Attend the 3-Day Coffee Business Master Class® to jumpstart your coffee business and make waves in the specialty coffee industry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are more women opening coffee shops?
Yes. The percentage of women-owned coffee shops has increased by 12% over the last five years. This mirrors a broader surge in women’s entrepreneurship across the U.S.: by 2024, women started nearly 49% of all new businesses, up from just 29% in 2019. At Texas Coffee School, women now account for more than 55% of the coffee shops opened by graduates in 2025.
Why are women opening coffee shops?
According to Guidant Financial’s 2024 research, the top motivators for women starting businesses are autonomy (being their own boss), escaping corporate structures, and pursuing a passion. Coffee shops align uniquely well with all three: they offer a technical challenge, genuine human connection, and a community-driven environment where passion can thrive.
How can I open a women-owned coffee shop?
The most important first step is education. Texas Coffee School’s 3-Day Coffee Business Master Class® covers everything from writing a business plan and securing funding to equipment, operations, and menu development. Hundreds of women from around the world have used the class as their launchpad with no prior coffee experience required.
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