Multi-unit Biggby Coffee owners Keith Washington and Curtis Grace won the bid to replace a Milwaukee Starbucks store, 920 North Water St., with a Biggby location. It will open in April.

The 379-unit coffee franchise secured 48 store openings last year, including units in emerging markets such as Illinois, Idaho, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia.

"We are thrilled to announce additional expansion within Wisconsin. There's a tremendous amount of opportunity in the coffee and cafe space," Bob Fish, Biggby co-CEO said in a company press release. "No one else is doing what we are on the same scale, and that's attracting a lot of attention.

Washington and Grace met while working in an airport, decided they wanted more for themselves and started to figure out a business plan together. Now, the duo owns two Biggby locations in Franklin, Wisconsin, and Saint Charles, Illinois. They also have two more in the works in Cudahy, Wisconsin.

"Keith and I were born and raised in Milwaukee and hope to bring several Biggby COFFEE locations to the area and surrounding areas throughout the years," Grace said in the release. "Our goal is to open one to two locations per year."

East Lansing, Michigan-based Biggby aims to have 1,000 locations open by 2028 and is focused on cultivating a Biggby Nation team culture that helps people build a life they love.

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