Waynes, formerly known as Wayne's Coffee[1] is a Swedish-based coffeehouse chain founded in Stockholm in 1994. It is now owned by Tank & Rast, and through its franchising model, it has coffeehouses in multiple countries in Europe and Asia.
Wayne's Coffee was founded in 1994 in Stockholm, Sweden[2] with the aim to offer an authentic Swedish fika experience.[2] Wayne's Coffee is certified organicbyKRAV in Sweden[3] and the Rainforest Alliance internationally.[4] Hailed as the "Swedish version of Starbucks,"[5] Wayne's Coffee introduced a franchise model in 1997 that enabled it to expand to 150 locations in eight countries.[6][7]
In 2018, Wayne's Coffee was bought by German motorway services company Tank & Rast.[2] Founder Anders Stål was subsequently replaced as Wayne's Coffee CEO by Mats Hörnell.[2] In 2017, Wayne's Coffee won Svenska Franchise Föreningen's (The Swedish Franchise Association) Franchise Chain of the Year award.[8]
Wayne's Coffee has over 400 coffeehouses in Sweden,[citation needed] and the coffeehouses aim to have similar styling throughout the country.[9] In 1999, Wayne's Coffee opened up coffeehouses in Finland, the first country outside Sweden to get Wayne's Coffee branches.[10] Wayne's Coffee had around locations in Finland until 2012, when franchisee Restamax (now known as NoHo Partners) gave up their licence to operate under the Wayne's Coffee brand name.[11][12] Later in the year, Wayne's Coffee opened new coffeehouses in Finland,[11] including in the Matkus shopping centerinKuopio and Tampere.[11][12]
In December 2017, Wayne's Coffee opened its first coffeehouse in the United Kingdom in Kensington, London.[2] In 2018, it opened a branch in Ilford.[13] In 2019, Wayne's Coffee opened a location in Manchester, their first in Northern England.[citation needed] In the same year, Wayne's Coffee started importing tea from the London Tea Exchange, who are believed to be the world's largest premium tea company.[14]
In Europe, Wayne's Coffee also has coffeehouses in Norway,[15] Germany, the Netherlands,[3] and Cyprus.[citation needed]
In 2010, Wayne's Coffee opened up a store in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In 2018, Wayne's Coffee opened a coffeehouse in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. It was the first Wayne's coffeehouse in Asia (excluding the Middle East).[3] By the end of 2018, Wayne's had seven stores in Vietnam.[8] In 2019, Wayne's Coffee opened up a store in Shanghai, China.[8] In Asia, Wayne's Coffee also has coffeehouses in Jordan[citation needed] and Oman.[3]
