As a result of high sales on N.C. State’s campus, executives at Port City Java are looking to expand the franchise to other college campuses, according to Steve Schnitzler, CEO of Port City Java.

Schnitzler said company leaders weren’t expecting the Park Shops location to be as successful as it is now.

“I remember talking to Kitty Lewis [the Director of Retail Operations for University Dining] about what she felt that store was going to do sales wise and thinking ‘there’s no way,’” Schnitzler said. “The number she was throwing out there was too high. It’s just remarkable how busy it gets.”

The Port City Java in Park Shops has the highest sales of all locations in the country, according to Kevin Howen, the Business Manager for University Dining.

Currently, Port City Java, which is based out of Wilmington, N.C., is located on the campuses of UNC-Wilmington and Cape Fear Community College as cafes and at Elon and Clemson as part of the dining hall and catering systems, according to Schnitzler.

Port City Java and N.C. State have been partners since 2003, according to Howen. 

Lewis said when the University put out a bid for a coffee company, Port City Java immediately got on board. 

Howen said Port City Java is a regional brand that can easily visit campus for meetings and has a vested interest in the success of the University, making it a good choice for campus.

“We’re getting a product that is both local and sustainable,” Howen said. 

Schnitzler said Port City Java views itself as a North Carolina brand because the company roasts all of its own coffee in Wilmington using both conventional and organic methods and is happy to provide N.C. State students with its products.

“This company was formed here. It was based here. It was a natural fit,” Schnitzler said. “We are thrilled that N.C. State uses products that are made here. It’s a great boom to the local economy and we try to partner locally as much as we can.”

According to Jennifer Gilmore, director of marketing and communication for Campus Enterprises, the Port City Java in Park Shops has been so successful because it is one of the most populated, yet under-served areas of campus. 

Because the company is small, Howen said Port City Java is flexible. When the University wanted to make sure students could get items that fit within an equivalency, the company was willing to offer a smaller sandwich line so students wouldn’t have to pay the difference. The University’s culinary team presented items to Port City Java and were approved.

“We selected this brand because it offered a solution to multiple challenges we had here at State,” Gilmore said. “We needed a venue that could operate out of a relatively small space often provided to us within existing buildings where we could not install things like cooking ventilation systems and grease traps.”

Port City Java receives a 6 percent commission of each sale. The remaining 94 percent goes back to University dining to pay salaries, wages, facilities and any other costs of production. 

Port City Java is not the only successful franchised branch on campus. The Chick-fil-A located in the Atrium has the highest sales of all food court-style Chick-fil-As in the region, according to Howen.

Chick-fil-A has been on campus since 1996 and receives 10 percent of each sale made, according to Gilmore. 

Both Gilmore and Howen said though these stores do have the highest sales, it is important to distinguish between high sales and profitability and that the locations on campus are not necessarily the most profitable.

Howen said companies can choose from two options when franchising. They can either move into the location and run the entire operation while playing a rental fee, or they can choose to sell the brand and allow that entity to control the operation.

N.C. State has chosen only to pursue options that allow them to control the operations as this allows the University to provide jobs for both students and non-students in part-time and full-time positions, Howen said.

According to Howen, having control allows the school to manage and reduce the amount of revenue that goes to businesses outside of the University.

Schnitzler said the new generation of students has grown up going to coffee shops and experiencing coffee, something that didn’t happen in earlier decades. 

“Coffee houses have become a traditional place for ideas to be exchanged, which makes it perfect for a college campus,” Schnitzler said.