Forza Coffee Co., a Tacoma-based coffee shop franchise concern, says it's looking to expand here with at least three new cafes this year, adding to one already operating on the South Hill and another planned in Spokane Valley.

Rich Jennings, the company's managing partner, says Forza's real estate representatives are negotiating for three properties on the North Side and looking for other Spokane-area properties.

"This year, we're launching heavily into Spokane," Jennings says. "The goal is to have five Spokane-area stores in 2011."

Forza's first franchise cafe in the Spokane market opened in 2007 and is located in the Lincoln Heights Shopping Center, at 2829 E. 29th. Another franchisee plans to open an outlet in the Common Grounds retail center, at 325 S. Sullivan, in Spokane Valley.

Forza offers specialty coffee beverages and espresso, smoothies, soft drinks, and its proprietary-roast coffee beans. Its food menu includes pastries, sandwiches, and salads.

Forza cafes, which incorporate Italian porcelain-tiled floors and dark African mahogany woodwork in their interior designs, range in size from 1,600 to 2,700 square feet of floor space and generally are larger than typical competitor's stores, Jennings says.

Most cafes include meeting rooms and an area for musical performances. Some outlets, including the planned Valley store, have drive-through windows.

Darrell Dotson, who with his wife Donna owns and operates the Lincoln Heights franchise, says he's content managing a single outlet.

The Spokane Valley franchisee, Paul Rodriguez, who's moving here from the West Side, says he hopes to open additional stores after the Valley store gets off the ground.

Jennings says a typical Forza caf has eight or nine employees who work 30 hours or more a week. A few franchise owners, however, prefer to employ a larger amount of part-time employees, he says.

Five of Forza's 23 stores sell beer and wine in addition to conventional coffee-shop beverages, and beer-and-wine sales "will be an option for new franchises," Jennings says.

Although 60 percent of Forza's overall sales occur between 6 a.m. and 1 p.m., evening beer and wine sales can total half of a store's sales on days of musical performances, he says.

"Live music events are a big success," Jennings says.

On the West Side, Forza has a stable of 18 musicians that rotate between stores. Jennings says Forza will be looking to hire local artists to perform at its stores here.

"We will be asking for artists to contact us," he says.

Forza, which means "strength" in Italian, was founded by Brad Carpenter in 2005, and its revenues have grown each year since then, Jennings says.

The company opened its first franchise on the West Side in 2006. Jennings and two other partners, who are former franchise owners of several Jiffy Lube International Inc. outlets, bought shares in the company in 2008.

Forza opened 11 franchise stores corporatewide last year, and is looking for franchisees who want to open multiple outlets.

"We want a business relationship with people who have the capability to do clusters of franchises," Jennings says.

Franchise fees are $30,000 for one cafe, $15,000 for a second, and $10,000 for a third, he says. Forza's website says the total franchisee investment can approach $500,000 for a cafe with a drive-through lane.