The Stoke, a surf-inspired coffee shop and fitness studio in West Ocean City, Md., is expanding to Dewey Beach this summer.

"Watching The Stoke grow this past year has been so incredible," said Molly Wagner, who co-founded the business with her husband, Brendan, in November 2024. "It's been really cool seeing all of these new friendships build for people who now go to classes together; they become friends, they drink their coffee, they get a smoothie afterward."

The business is taking over retail space on the first floor of a mixed-use building at 1601 Coastal Hwy., where Grotto Pizza used to be before building a new location across the street.

Construction of The Stoke just began and is expected to take a couple of months, with plans for the location to open its doors around midsummer, said Molly. An exact opening date has not yet been determined.

Molly and Brendan, both Ocean City natives, created The Stoke as an answer to what they felt was lacking in the area – a place where all kinds of people, from those who are super into fitness to those who just want to grab a coffee or a bite to eat and get work done, can come together, feel welcome and feel good about the choices they make while they're there.

"It's the idea of creating a community that we really, really enjoy," Molly said. "The overall goal is that you come in there and you feel relaxed. It's not an overstimulating environment."

Last summer was their first summer in business.

It wasn't long before their customers – some of whom would drive nearly an hour down from Rehoboth – started asking them to expand to the Delaware beaches.

They began looking for available properties and decided last August to enter a lease in Dewey.

Molly said the two locations will be like sisters, not twins; the overall layout will be basically the same, but with slightly different decor and color schemes.

The food and drink menus at the new location will be very similar to those at the Ocean City location, offering coffee, smoothies, and small, healthy bites, like avocado toast and acai bowls.

The new location will also offer the same kinds of workout classes – Pilates and sculpt fusion, yoga and strength training – and will feature a roughly 1,000-square-foot fitness studio. Customers will be able to choose between purchasing individual drop-in classes or multi-class packs.

"For a lot of people, fitness can be scary, so we wanted to make it a very welcoming environment, where anyone can come in and try a class, and it's just a place where you can come to really better yourself and feel good about yourself and the decisions that you make," Molly said.