Dive Brief:
- Stinker Stores is bringing British coffeehouse chain Costa Coffee to select locations, the company said in a LinkedIn announcement.
- The partnership will bring a variety of beverage options, as well as Costa Coffee’s fresh-ground beans, to the stores. Stinker could not be reached by press time to share how many locations are part of the agreement.
- Beverages are a hot topic in 2025, from smaller LTOs and flavor expansions to c-store retailers like Casey’s General Stores and QuikTrip overhauling large sections of their drink programs.
Dive Insight:
While many of Stinker’s roughly 100 c-stores currently offer a limited variety of hot beverages, like coffee, tea and cappuccino, according to its website, this new partnership will expand the beverage menu where available.
“We're talkin' espresso, cappuccinos, lattes, and more — made fresh, fast, and just the way you like it,” Stinker said in the social media post.
This continues a series of foodservice upgrades for Stinker. The company has also added machines to make fresh-squeezed orange juice and integrated AI into its roller grills to ensure items are fresh and to reduce waste.
Stinker joins a larger movement in the c-store industry toward updating beverage programs this year. Casey’s rolled out a refreshed “Darn Good Coffee” program at the beginning of the year — a refresh that the retailer spent over a year developing.
More recently, QuikTrip rolled out new fountain, tea and frozen drink dispensers to all of its locations. The updated machines give QuikTrip’s stores the ability to offer more flavors and customization, and provides an easy way to add seasonal or limited-time options.
