Starbucks will close stores on Main Street and Wilshire as part of a plan to shutter about 250 underperforming coffeehouses across North America according to a statement from the Company CEO released this week.
The Seattle-based chain did not release a list of affected locations but stores being cut can be identified by checking a store's hours online. Stores slated to close will post additional signs, and the closures will show up in the Starbucks app.
The company announced the cuts Sept. 24 in a regulatory filing, saying it would close about 250 of its 18,371 North American stores. In a memo to employees that day, Chief Operating Officer Mike Grams said the closures would take place later in the week and target locations where the company does not believe it can consistently deliver the experience it wants for customers and employees, or where it sees no "path to acceptable financial performance."
The company expects about $300 million in charges, including $200 million for early lease exits and severance, CNN reported.
Grams said the company is talking directly with affected employees, whom Starbucks calls partners, and will offer transfers where possible and severance to those who cannot be placed at another store. Customers will be directed to nearby locations, he said.
"Closing any coffeehouse is a difficult decision, and we know today's news will be hard for the partners, customers and communities affected," Grams wrote.
The closures come as the company says its turnaround effort, dubbed "Back to Starbucks," is gaining ground. Grams said customers are getting faster service and a more consistent experience, and that the company is speeding toward completing 1,500 store renovations, which it calls uplifts.
U.S. same-store sales rose 7.9% in the quarter ended June 28, after falling 2% in fiscal 2025. Quarterly profit rose 87% to $1.05 billion. Revenue slipped 1% to $9.3 billion after Starbucks sold a 60% stake in its China business to Boyu Capital. Shares closed at $93.65 on Sept. 24, up about 13% this year.
Grams said the company closes and opens stores every year as part of managing its portfolio and remains committed to growth in North America, with a pipeline of new locations in development.
However, the company has faced criticism for closing stores that were unionized or were working to form a union. Initial reports said about 20 union stores were among those targeted for closure this week. Workers at more than 700 U.S. Starbucks stores have voted to unionize since 2021 but have no contract.
The latest cuts follow two earlier waves of closures that hit the Westside.
In July 2022, Starbucks said it would close 16 U.S. stores, six of them in the Los Angeles area, citing "a high volume of challenging incidents that make it unsafe to continue to operate." Among them was a store on Ocean Front Walk near the Santa Monica Pier. A National Labor Relations Board complaint later alleged the company closed that store and 22 others partly to discourage unionizing.
Starbucks ousted CEO Laxman Narasimhan in August 2024 and hired Brian Niccol from Chipotle, sending shares up 24.5% that day. In September 2025, Niccol launched a $1 billion restructuring that cut 900 corporate jobs and closed 627 stores in North America and Europe. At least 20 Los Angeles-area stores closed, including one at 2901 Ocean Park Blvd. in Santa Monica.
The company cut 300 more corporate jobs in May and closed regional offices, including one in Burbank.
The Associated Press contributed to this report