Inside Fort Worth-based coffeeshop Ampersand on Saturday, June 13, 2026 at the new terminal C of DFW International Airpor
Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News
Passengers pass by as Fort Worth-based coffeeshop Ampersand CEO and cofounder Toan Luong poses for a portrait, on Saturday, June 13, 2026 at the new terminal C of DFW International Airpor
Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News
As tired travelers fly in and out of the country’s second-busiest airport, they can buy coffee at a variety of chain stores dotting DFW International Airport. But those looking for a local flair can find it in Ampersand’s green-tiled shop at gate C37.
When Ampersand coffee first opened its doors in Fort Worth, its owners never imagined they would one day open a location in DFW International. Now they have a store and a robot-operated kiosk. And, with the airport planning to open Terminal F in 2027, they have another store on the way.
“We’re growing, but we’re doing so carefully,” co-owner Toan Luong said.
Article continues below this ad
The locally known coffee shop is run by a group friends who met in high school and college and remains grounded in community. It serves a Vietnamese iced coffee that’s a nod to its founders’ heritage. And it’s the site of a run club started by employees that now includes thousands of members.
“It’s the fact that we all work together for a common mission, for the betterment of the community, Luong said. “That’s what drives us, that’s what keeps us going and that’s what keeps us together.”
“David and Goliath”
The Fort Worth staple almost didn’t make it to the airport, according to Luong. Ampersand had to compete against national and international brands for the coffee shop spot. From there, challenges grew.
“Winning the location was just the tip of the iceberg,” Luong said. “We ran into every obstacle possible.”
Article continues below this ad
When Ampersand was more than halfway done building its first airport location, its main investor pulled out their $2.5 million loan, Luong said. The team had to scramble to find a backer just a couple of months before they were scheduled to open. Thanks to a last-minute Small Business Administration loan, they were able to continue the project and stave off financial ruin.
The loan paid off. Ampersand opened in Terminal C in 2024. Luong estimates that the full-service shop serves 800 to 1,3000 tickets a day while the kiosk serves 200 to 250 sales a day. With the Terminal F expansion on the horizon, Ampersand’s team now wants to help other local businesses get into the airport.
“When we went in here, it was David and Goliath,” Luong said. “What we’re trying to do in particular right now is to help them get into the airport.”
That help includes making business connections between other Dallas-Fort Worth area small businesses and the airport, and giving them advice on how to gain the financial and logistical capital to jump into the airport concession industry.
Breaking into the airport
DFW International has a program for small businesses, but there’s still a lot of bureaucracy to navigate through to get a lease, not to mention the cost.
Article continues below this ad
“It’s a lot for a small business,” Debra Moore, owner of Mama Moore’s Gourmet Popcorn, said.
Moore opened Mama Moore’s in 2012 as a pop-up to pay for her son’s college tuition. Fourteen years and two stores later, she’s in the process of opening two locations in the airport at Terminals A and B.
To get to that point, she had to win a request for procurement, or RFP, contract. That required submitting an extensive application. Once the contract got approved, she needed to find architects, a general contractor and deal with construction costs exponentially higher than building outside of an airport.
To help with costs, Moore chose to franchise with a prime operator. It means letting go of some control over her business, but it gets her product in front of a global audience. That makes it worth it, she said.
“It is very expensive to be in the airport,” Moore said. “That makes it really hard for really small businesses to try to get into the airport unless you’re working with someone.”
Article continues below this ad
Franchising enabled Moore to get to the airport, but Ampersand wants to help small businesses do it independently. One business they see a potential collaboration with is Dallas-based Mike’s Chicken. Ampersand’s founders became friends with the family behind the popular mom-and-pop shop after becoming regulars at their restaurant. From there, they saw an opportunity to one day build a business partnership.
If a contract opens up, Luong explained that Ampersand’s team would try to help Mike’s Chicken get through the RFP process. That way, the family business could maintain direct control over its operations, like Ampersand did, instead of working through a larger corporation or prime operator.
“This industry has been monopolized, to say the least,” Luong said. “We’re here to balance out the universe.”
From Fort Worth to the airport to beyond, Ampersand seeks to keep expanding. They’re eyeing a location in Dallas next. After that, they aspire to grow nationally and globally.
Article continues below this ad
“What I’ve learned from the airport, too, is that if you can dream it, and if you can think it, you should aim for the stars,” Luong said.