Starbucks To Close 600 U.S. Stores

SEATTLE — Starbucks Corp. has announced it's closing 600 underperforming stores in the United States.

The Seattle-based premium coffee company also announced Tuesday it expects to open fewer than 200 new company-operated stores in the United States in fiscal 2009.

The company says it will try to place workers from closed stores in remaining Starbucks.

Comments

[arunachala]

05:05 PM on 07/03/2008

i donno sorry starbucks. atleast i like their overprice little brownies

[BernieKeating]

02:33 PM on 07/03/2008

Someday, I hope to go to a Starbucks in Mexico to see if they list "Soy Latte" as "I am Latte".

[MyOwnPerson]

02:12 PM on 07/03/2008

I'm sorry, I don't understand the fascination with Starbuck's? But I guess there's no accounting for taste.

Do people really like the taste of burnt and the oil slick that rests on top of their coffee? I've tried a number of Starbuck's coffee drinks and couldn't stomach it for the nasty taste. Every drink I tried tasted the same...burnt.

I've tried and bought coffees from all over the world. Had some that were top notch and some that could make your hair stand on end and walk out of the folicles, they were so strong, but I've never had anything that tastes as bad as Starbuck's. Even Monkey Poop coffee tasted better than Starbuck's, and I can honestly tell you that stuff is really bad!

Like another poster said, support your local cafes and coffee shops, especially if they sell locally roasted coffees. You'll get more bang for your buck and I think you'll find a better coffee. I've had the best coffees in the hidden little gems of small towns. Just look on the internet. You'll find a great local coffee shop no matter where you are. I happened through Orange VA (no where land USA) and found one that had great coffee and served the best BBQ I've ever had. Can't go wrong with Mom 'n Pop shops!

[paulbikes]

10:28 AM on 07/03/2008

Starbucks always sucked.

Support your local independent coffeeshop and tell starbucks to eat your shorts.

[Chemwiz]

10:13 AM on 07/03/2008

Hopefuly, they will be replaced by Dunkin Donuts!

[igmond50]

07:29 AM on 07/03/2008

Now people are going to have to drive an extra 16 feet to find a Starbucks that's open.

[ming099]

06:27 PM on 07/02/2008

........7-11 STILL makes better coffee.........

[macintoshsauce]

06:26 PM on 07/02/2008

Charbucks... We burn coffee completely.

[Myshkin57]

06:03 PM on 07/02/2008

I'm a bit confused by many of the posts here. 600 UNDERPERFORMING stores are being closed. 200 stores are opening this year and that's not many for Starbuck's. So, there will be a net of 400 fewer stores. So, the demand for Starbuck's may not have gone done. Rather, they expanded more in the last year or two than they should have. But that does not indicate demand has gone done. It merely indicates that they predicted the demand would grow at a higher rate than it did.

[MyOwnPerson]

01:44 PM on 07/03/2008

There's no accounting for taste and in the case of Staryucks...it's all in the mouth! I guess some people just like the taste of burnt and the oil slick that rests on top. Each to his/her own. As for me, I've tried their coffee drinks a number of times and couldn't stomach it for the nasty burnt taste. Every drink I've tried has tasted the same...burnt. I've lived all over the world and had some top notch coffees and some that could make your hair stand on end and walk out of the folicles, they were so strong. I've never had anything that tastes as bad as Staryuck's.

[BPCentrisAmerican]

05:39 PM on 07/02/2008

I drink my own; I think I've been in Starbucks 4 times in my whole life twice because my wife had a gift certificate and 2 business meetings. Last one I was in was in NYC on 45th and Madison and a cup of coffee cost me more than a good launch.

[alieninvader]

04:16 PM on 07/03/2008

A good launch of what?

[jmyoung666]

04:30 PM on 07/02/2008

Having defended them generally. I will say I like Starbucks for their lattes and other espresso drinks, but regular coffee at Starbuck's sucks. The coffee at McDonald's is better.

[iambusto]

04:30 PM on 07/02/2008

with Starbucks at its 52 week low (or probably even 2-3 year low), no wonder the ceo has to do something about it.

a bigger restructuring could be in the works.

[Myshkin57]

05:47 PM on 07/02/2008

It already is.

[jmyoung666]

04:28 PM on 07/02/2008

Can anyone doubt there were too many Starbucks? I like Starbucks, although I try to hit local places when I can.

As someone else posted, they are not Krispy Kreme, but they are a victim of overexpansion.

[Stagehnd1]

03:46 PM on 07/02/2008

wow...You know the economy is bad when Starbucks closes stores. Especially considering their coffee is like crack.

[prayerfulinchicago]

02:46 PM on 07/02/2008

Maybe a couple of years ago, I became disappointed in Starbucks, especially stores run by third parties like in Target, the grocery, etc.

I stopped going.

Earlier this year, I was skeptical when they had that evening where they shut all the Starbucks for retraining. I was also skeptical when they introduced that Pike's Place Roast which sounded like it was Dunkin Donuts blend.

I was surprised that they HAVE gotten better.

I am buying more coffee there.

They won't have the problems Krispy Kreme had, but they won't be as big as they used to be. I think they will be a wiser and better company and employer for all this.