Twenty years after Mokas Coffee & Eatery poured its first cup, the Salina-based chain will fire up its first franchised espresso bar on Sept. 30 — a 3,100-square-foot Olathe, Kan., café owned by Christian Coleman.

The Olathe opening takes Mokas past five wholly corporate stores and into a 15-unit development pipeline. Coleman has committed to six locations across Johnson, Douglas and Shawnee counties; the rest of the pipeline spreads across Wichita, Kansas City and other Kansas towns.

What does the franchise shift change for Mokas?

Until now, the 20-year-old brand has run every store itself — five units split among Salina, Colby and Wichita (three of the five inside Wichita alone). A franchise model hands Mokas a second growth engine without forcing the parent company to staff, train or capitalize each new opening. Coleman owns his café outright. Mokas supplies the playbook, the roasts and the sign on the wall.

How big is the Olathe build?

The Olathe café sits at 3,100 square feet — wide enough for a full kitchen, a long barista line and seating that lets a breakfast-and-lunch concept stretch its average ticket past drip coffee. Coleman has not disclosed build-out cost or projected sales. The footprint puts Mokas closer to a fast-casual hybrid than a kiosk.

The location is expected to create between 45 and 60 jobs — a number that signals how labor-heavy a coffee-and-eatery concept stays even at modest scale.

What's on the menu — and what does opening month fund?

Mokas will run its full daytime lineup: roasted coffee, smoothies, freshly baked pastries, and made-to-order breakfast and lunch. During the first 30 days, 10% of every 16-ounce specialty drink sale goes to KidsTLC, an Olathe-area nonprofit tapped as launch partner. It's a soft open with a community price tag stapled to the most visible SKU on the board.

What's the math behind the move?

Mokas' pipeline is unusually heavy for a 20-year-old brand. Five open, fifteen in development, six of those already committed to Coleman. The remaining nine sit in Wichita, Kansas City and other Kansas markets. That's a 3:1 development-to-open ratio — a multi-year construction arc, not a single-quarter push.

Twenty years of company-run stores proved the recipes and the roasts. Now Coleman and the next nine developers will test whether Mokas can scale through someone else's P&L. If the Olathe store hits its labor, sales and charity marks in month one, expect Coleman's second unit to follow fast. Expect other Kansas operators to start asking who gets the next territory.