Starbucks plans to close 250 North American stores

Starbucks plans to close about 250 coffeehouses across North America later this week, Chief Operating Officer Mike Grams said in a letter to employees, describing the locations as either falling short of financial expectations or unable to deliver the experience the company wants for customers and employees. The closures would affect about 1% of Starbucks’ more than 18,000 North American stores. The company has not identified which locations will shut or provided a breakdown between the United States and Canada. It also has not said how many affected stores are unionized or given a detailed count of employees who may lose their jobs. Starbucks said it will try to transfer employees from closing stores to other locations where possible and provide severance support when transfers cannot be arranged. The company has not specified how many employees will be transferred or separated. One report attributed estimates of about 900 affected positions and roughly $300 million in restructuring expenses to the company, figures not corroborated elsewhere in the supplied reporting. Grams said the store reviews followed renovations intended to make North American coffeehouses more inviting.