Starbucks plans to close 250 North American stores later this week.
It is the second big round of store closures under Starbucks Chairman and CEO Brian Niccol, who joined the company in 2024. Last September, Starbucks closed 627 stores in North America and Europe and laid off 900 non-retail employees.
In a letter to employees, Starbucks Chief Operating Officer Mike Grams said the locations targeted either aren’t delivering acceptable financial results or can’t provide the kind of experience that Starbucks wants for customers and employees.
The company didn’t say Thursday which coffeehouses will close or how many are located in the U.S. It also didn’t say how many of the affected coffeehouses are unionized. More than 700 U.S.
Starbucks stores have voted to unionize since late 2021, but Starbucks doesn’t support the unionization effort and the union and the company have yet to reach a labor agreement.
Grams said Starbucks is continuing to retrofit its North American coffeehouses to make them cozier and more inviting. The company expects 1,500 stores will be retrofitted by Sept. 30, which is the end of Starbucks’ fiscal year.
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“This progress has given us a clearer view of the performance of every coffeehouse,” Grams said in his letter. “While most are benefiting from this overall momentum, some coffeehouses continue to underperform despite the hard work and commitment of all of you.”
Grams said Starbucks is still committed to growing its store count in North America.
Starbucks said it will transfer employees to other stores if possible or provide severance support if it’s not able to place an employee in another location.
In May, Starbucks laid off an additional 300 corporate employees and closed some underused U.S. offices.
Global News sent a request to Starbucks asking how many stores would be closed in Canada and how many Canadian workers could be impacted. A spokesperson did not disclose exact numbers for Canada.
Starbucks shares fell 0.3 per cent Thursday morning as trading opened.
– with a file from Global News’ Ariel Rabinovitch
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