This gave rise to lots of independents, but you never know what you're getting from one independent to the next. Just because you're an independent does not automatically make your coffee any good.
Blue Bottle has worked really hard to develop a reputation of really really caring about coffee, from farm to cup (and good ingredients in all food products). There are very few large independents who have a similar reputation (Stumptown comes to mind and Intelligentsia come to mind).
The last time I saw explosive growth in Coffee, which was cut way too short by a buyout from Starbucks for millions, was the Coffee Equipment company who manufactured the Clover machine. The Clover essentially elevated drip coffee to espresso status. The machine made drip coffee that tasted good, one cup at a time, and within 60 seconds. Blue Bottle isn't manufacturing anything, so my opinion is that it's going to be a long road to get to big growth.