[COFFEE PEOPLE, INC. LOGO]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

         KEN ROSS                                    DOLORES CHENOWETH
         CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER                     INVESTOR RELATIONS
         503-672-3300                                503-291-1924


                COFFEE PEOPLE, INC. CO-FOUNDER STEPS DOWN AS CEO;
               COMPANY COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF 15 ARIZONA STORES


PORTLAND,  OREGON ...  May 22,  1997 -- Coffee  People,  Inc.  (NASDAQ:MOKA),  a
specialty  coffee  retailer and operator of coffee houses,  announced today that
Jim Roberts,  chairman and chief executive officer,  is retiring from day-to-day
operations.  Taylor H. Devine,  currently president and chief operating officer,
has assumed the title of chief executive officer.  Roberts, 47, will continue to
serve as chairman of the board.

         The company also reported that the acquisition of 15 Coffee  Plantation
stores in Arizona was completed on May 21, 1997.

         "I'm  leaving  the  day-to-day  running of the  business  in  competent
hands,"  said  Roberts.  "Since  joining  the  company in 1995,  Taylor has been
guiding  Coffee  People in  strengthening  our  position  in  existing  markets,
formulating  our  strategy for growth and  implementing  our  expansion  plans."
Roberts,  who co-founded  Coffee People along with his wife,  Patricia,  in 1983
plans to pursue studies to enter the ministry.

         Devine,  56, has an extensive  background in successfully  establishing
retail concepts on a national and international  basis.  Prior to joining Coffee
People,  he held positions as vice president of  international  operations  with
Blockbuster  Entertainment Corporation and as executive vice president and chief
operating officer for Mrs. Fields Cookies. He is a graduate of Hillsdale College
and received his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.

         "I intend to continue to  contribute  to the things that  differentiate
Coffee People from other  competitors -- creativeness  in our business  approach
and concern for all our constituencies," Roberts explained.

     "I am extremely proud of the  accomplishments of the company," he said. "We
have grown from one store in  Portland  to 45 stores  now in  operation  in five
states -- Oregon, California, Colorado, Arizona and Illinois."

         The most recent  expansion was the acquisition of 15 Coffee  Plantation
stores in Phoenix and Tucson,  Arizona  which was  completed  earlier this week.
Coffee People  purchased the stores for  approximately  $8.4 million,  including
inventory.  The  company  financed  $6 million  of the  purchase  price  under a
five-year term bank loan, with the remaining amount paid from cash reserves.

         "Fourteen  of the  acquired  stores had sales of $8.2 million in Coffee
Plantation's fiscal year ended June 29, 1996," said Taylor H. Devine,  president
and chief  executive  officer of Coffee  People.  "Five of those stores were not
open for the full  fiscal  year and the 15th  store was  opened  in the  current
fiscal year." With the addition of the 15 stores,  which will be operated  under
the Coffee  Plantation  name,  Coffee  People has expanded its  operations by 27
stores in the eight months since its initial public offering in September 1996.

         Devine  said  that  Coffee  People  will  continue  to look  for  store
development and acquisition opportunities.

         For the most recent 12 months ended March 31, 1997,  Coffee  People had
revenue  of $12.6  million.  The  company  has been in  business  since 1983 and
currently  has 45 outlets open  including  coffee  houses,  drive-through  Motor
Mokas(R) and Aero  Moka(R)  kiosks at the Portland  International  Airport.  The
company's stores feature a menu of more than 200 coffee drinks, shakes, pastries
and other coffee-related products.