Oregon political leaders lament Dutch Bros’ move out of state

A generation of Oregonians grew up with Dutch Bros, and the drive-thru chain grew up with them — honing its recipes for brightly colored energy drinks locally before taking the “Dutch Mafia” national.

So the news stung Wednesday, when

Dutch Bros confirmed that it will formally move its headquarters from its hometown in Grants Pass to Arizona

Though the corporate office in southern Oregon never had more than a couple hundred employees, Dutch Bros had a big impact in that small city and on the whole state’s cultural identity. The company’s exit carries additional weight because Oregon is struggling to regain the economic vibrancy it enjoyed in the years before COVID-19.

“The governor is always disappointed when the headquarters of a homegrown business leaves the state,” said Roxy Mayer, press secretary to Gov. Tina Kotek. “She is proud of the success Dutch Bros has had here, and at the end of the day their growth is an indicator of that success.”

Dutch Bros is worth nearly $12 billion by Wall Street’s reckoning, trailing only Nike among Oregon’s most valuable companies. It opened its 1,000th drive-thru earlier this year, its footprint now stretching all the way to Daytona Beach, Florida. It hopes eventually to have 7,000 shops all over the country.

That growth is a big part of why Dutch Bros left.

When the company opened its new offices near Phoenix last year

and began moving corporate executives there, Dutch Bros said it needed to be closer to its fastest-growing markets.

Small-town Grants Pass felt increasingly remote to a company increasingly focused on Texas and Tennessee even though Travis Boersma, Dutch Bros’ co-founder and chairman, still lives there.

Still, losing a big name like Dutch Bros felt personal to many Oregonians — and to some political leaders.

“Dutch Bros has been a fixture in our community for a long time,” said Sen. Noah Robinson, a Republican whose district includes parts of Josephine County. Like other Republicans, he said the state’s economic policies may have contributed to Dutch Bros’ departure.

“In general, Oregon is not a friendly business environment,” Robinson said. He said homelessness and crime in Grants Pass may have been factors in Dutch Bros’ decision. Other Republicans blamed the state’s tax policies.

Dutch Bros didn’t explain its departure this week, except to say it wanted more of its leadership collaborating in a single location.

“Bringing more people together will allow us to better serve our customers and crews across the country,” the company said. “With these changes, the Phoenix office will become our official HQ.”

A current employee and a former one, both familiar with the company’s thinking but who asked not to be named because they are not authorized to speak on its behalf, said that there was little Oregon could have done to retain Dutch Bros’ headquarters. They said the company had decided it needed to be in a big city with many large corporations, including chain restaurants, and a major airport.

Still, they said Oregon political leaders hadn’t been especially attentive to Dutch Bros and that they sometimes felt overlooked as they grew in a small city far from the Willamette Valley.

Business Oregon, the state’s economic development agency, insisted Thursday that it had always stayed in close touch with Dutch Bros.

“Our staff have been to their facilities, including the roasting operations which serves the growing Dutch Bros markets,” said Nathan Buehler, spokesperson for Business Oregon. “The company has acknowledged for some time that their business expansion path is to the south and east with expanding services in the new location.”

Oregon has an array of incentives and other tools to support growing companies, Buehler said. Sometimes, though, it’s not enough.

“Incentives and resources fit a variety of important needs for retention, expansion, and recruitment opportunities,” Buehler said, “but can’t offset a business’ particular unique business strategy and circumstances.”