Brevity Coffee Co Increases Average Number of Orders by 31% with Toast Go® 2

In 2019, coffee-industry veterans Kharis, Nick, Brittany, and Fred Corpening opened Brevity Coffee Co, a drive-through coffee shop in San Antonio, Texas. The shop was using Toast Go, the first generation of Toast’s handhelds, to serve customers directly in their cars with runners taking orders in line and sending them to the window for prep and pick up. 

Adapting for a stronger business model

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit earlier this year, Brevity Coffee Co actually saw a boom in business. 

“The concept of drive-through in general became a huge thing. A lot of businesses shut down and went strictly drive-through. People realized they needed to find other options to get their coffee, so that really helped us. It’s fast, efficient, and people feel safer not getting out of their cars to go inside anywhere.”

As the number of customers increased, so did the demand for safe and contactless options. That’s when Brevity Coffee Co transitioned to Toast Go 2. 

Providing a Safe and Contactless Experience

Toast Go 2’s multiple contactless payment options, including Apple Pay®, Google Pay®, Samsung Pay®, and tap to pay, all provide an easy way to process transactions that helps keep both customers and employees safe.

“Once contactless payments came into play, that was a huge deal. The tap to pay has been very popular and our runners use it often. With the pandemic, customers are looking for that contactless experience and wherever they go they want to minimize people taking their card and touching it.”

Faster, Sleeker, Stronger

The shop offers a wide variety of coffee drinks, smoothies, and even Redbull for their younger customers in the evening. Drinks are made to order and can be customized per any customer’s request.  With 3x the processing speed of its predecessor, Toast Go 2 has given Brevity Coffee Co the speed needed to process 31% more orders during their peak rush hours of 7am-10am. 

With Toast Go 2, Brevity Coffee Co started to see an increase upwards of 20 additional orders per hour. “We can get through a lot more cars in the morning because of how fast Toast Go 2 can process payment and send orders. The speed and efficiency is one of our favorite parts about the new handhelds.” 

Having a handheld that would last throughout the entire day was essential with the high volume of orders that Brevity Coffee Co takes in. Toast Go 2 offers the 24-hour battery life needed to make the shop successful. 

“Battery life was huge for us,” says Kharis. “With the Toast Go, we were having to charge them six hours into a shift which was really disruptive. With Toast Go 2, the battery life is incredible. We’re open from 5am-9pm and don’t need to charge them at all throughout the day.”

Durability and reliability have also played a huge role in offering an enjoyable customer experience. When Kharis arrives at the shop in the morning, her Toast Go 2s turn on and are ready to go within seconds. She was also impressed with how strong the Toast Go 2 was. “Our servers are using them outside running alongside the cars so there’s times when the handhelds will be dropped or used in rainy weather. The grips along the sides make it much easier to hold and we don’t have to worry about the device being knocked around or getting rained on,” she says.

Brevity also uses Toast Kitchen Display Systems (KDS), which receive orders directly from the Toast Go 2s. “We have two KDS screens,” says Kharis. “Our main screen is set up for our window person to double check that the right drinks are going out while the second screen shows the drinks that need to be made.”

“There’s been no issues with lag or error with the Toast Go 2 and KDS connection. We even tested it with a line of cars 200 yards away from the building to see how fast the orders would come in. The results were instant,” says Kharis.

Turning Success into Expansion

The Corpenings are excited to build off of their growing success with Brevity Coffee Co. They have plans to open a second drive-through lane and are opening two more locations in the coming months. “As the demand for drive-through coffee grows, so does our plan to expand.” With their expansion comes the addition of more Toast Go 2s. “Being able to offer a customer contactless experience puts them more at ease. That and the increased speed and battery life were the most exciting game changers.”

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