Bootstrapped beginnings, hometown hospitality, and a tech stack that actually works.
With three locations across the greater Quad Cities area, what started as a side-project coffee trailer has grown into a beloved local brand known for its Southern hospitality, intentional service, and high-quality coffee. From specialty drinks like the Honey Lavender + Himalayan Sea Salt to the Blueberry Haze and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, crafted with their locally sourced Diamonds Espresso, 392 Caffé has become a community staple that balances craft with care.
Jay and Jenna founded 392 Caffé in 2011 after falling in love with each other, and with coffee. Both came from fashion retail and hospitality backgrounds, and when the opportunity arose to leave Los Angeles and relocate to Iowa, they saw potential in a market that hadn’t yet caught the third-wave coffee wave.
“We had grandma working… cleaning tables and washing dishes. We had her [Jenna’s] dad working in the kitchen, making sandwiches and whatnot. And then I remember we hired our first girl because she came in multiple days in the afternoon—when most people would be working—and we were like, ‘I don’t think you have a job. Want one?’”
Hospitality was always the foundation. For Jay and Jenna, it wasn’t just about the drinks—it was about building something personal, from the ground up.
Discovering Dripos
Jay first heard about Dripos in an unexpected but fitting way—through coffee. On a trip to Chicago, he visited a former 392 barista who was now working at a small shop in the city. Most of the cafés in the area were struggling, but this one seemed to be thriving. When Jay asked why, the answer wasn’t a new roast or viral drink, but their POS system. They had just switched from Square to Dripos.
Intrigued, Jay started researching. The more he looked into it, the more he realized how much they had been overpaying for features that felt like they should’ve been standard.
“We were paying for Square. Then we were paying separately for the app. Then we were paying again for email marketing. And none of it talked to each other.”
He reached out directly to Jack, Dripos’ co-founder. After a few conversations, Jack flew out to Iowa, toured the Quad Cities with Jay, and personally helped onboard all three 392 locations.
“We’ve been working with him ever since: developing features tailored to our flow, our menu, and how we like to do things.”
With Square, their custom-built app didn’t sync with inventory, which meant customers could order items that had already sold out. There were too many workarounds, too many tabs, too many separate systems. With Dripos, inventory, ordering, delivery, and customer communication now lived in one place. Whether someone orders online, in-app, or at the kiosk, the experience is the same. And that consistency, he says, is more valuable than fancy design.
Jay describes the system as clunky and piecemealed, especially when it came to managing app orders and inventory.
“I was calling app developers at 4:30 in the morning. They were on West Coast time. No one picked up. We were paying for Square, then paying for the app separately, then paying for everything else. It just added up. And the worst part? None of it talked to each other.”
Inventory, in particular, was a pain point. Their custom app didn’t integrate with Square’s backend, which meant if they sold out of something, like a batch of limited-edition donuts from a 100-year-old local bakery, there was no way to update the app in real time. Customers would order items that didn’t exist, and the team would scramble to fix it.
When they made the switch to Dripos, all of that changed. Inventory, loyalty, mobile ordering, DoorDash, and even kiosk and app experiences now lived in one place. It was fast, simple, and looked the same whether you ordered on your phone, online, or at the register.
“Everything feels cohesive now. And the best part? It’s consistent. We train one person on the system, and they can do everything—whether it’s syncing the menu, scheduling staff, or running payroll.”
Reclaiming Hospitality with Tech That Works
For Jay and Jenna, the switch was about more than just streamlining operations, but about reclaiming what mattered most: hospitality.
Over the years, they’ve seen the shift; Post-COVID, many customers and staff alike have grown more transactional. Gen Z workers especially aren’t always used to face-to-face interaction. Jay laughs about how much joy it brings him when a new hire, who once couldn’t make eye contact, starts greeting regulars by name.
“We feel like proud parents when that happens. It’s not just about coffee. It’s about building people.”
That people-first approach carries through everything they do. But to do it well, they need tools that don’t get in the way. Dripos helps them stay agile without compromising the customer experience. Whether it’s kiosk orders at the third location or loyalty offers for long-time app users, the goal is to make things intuitive and human.
“Some customers are convenience-based. They want to schedule their pickup for exactly 8:05 AM. And that’s great. But others come in to chat. Some come in to see Jenna. Some come in for a blueberry haze and to feel known. We want to be there for both.”
What Dripos Offers 392
For Jay and Jenna, one of the most valuable parts of switching to Dripos was the simplicity. Everything lives in one place: online ordering, kiosk functionality, loyalty programs, payroll, even third-party delivery integration. They no longer juggle three tablets for Uber Eats, Grubhub, and DoorDash. Every order filters into a single system, which means fewer missed tickets and a much smoother back bar flow. Features like card processing fee pass-through have helped them cut costs, and the consistent user experience—whether a customer orders at the kiosk, through the mobile app, or online—has made the ordering process seamless for both staff and guests.
Even more importantly, Dripos is still evolving. Jay has worked closely with the team to shape features that fit 392’s specific needs, and he’s excited about what’s coming next: multi-tiered loyalty options, smarter upsells, and a built-in payroll system that will let Jenna run HR and scheduling from the same dashboard they already use to manage everything else. For a growing business that wears a lot of hats, having one platform that does it all is mandatory.
Looking Ahead
Jay and Jenna aren’t slowing down anytime soon. With three core locations and a bakery under their belt, they’re constantly thinking about what’s next, from expanding to building better infrastructure on the backend.
But no matter how much they scale, one thing remains constant: good coffee, great people, and a system that supports both.
“The drinks get them in the door. The relationships keep them coming back.”
