‘Woke’ Coffee Giant Collapsing

Starbucks said it will close about 250 North American coffeehouses after a review of stores that are missing the company’s service standard or a path to acceptable profit. The closures are roughly 1 percent of more than 18,000 locations on the continent and are scheduled for later this week.

Chief Operating Officer Mike Grams announced the cuts in a letter to employees he addressed as “Partners.” “We have carefully reviewed our North America coffeehouse portfolio and identified locations where we do not believe we can consistently deliver the experience we want for customers and partners or where we don’t see a path to acceptable financial performance,” he wrote.

Most of the chain’s shops remain profitable, the company said. “Closing any coffeehouse is a difficult decision, and we know today’s news will be hard for the partners, customers and communities affected.”

The store list landed days after a separate legal endgame. Last week Starbucks agreed to drop race- and sex-based employment preferences nationwide and to pay Florida $1 million to resolve a lawsuit over its diversity policies.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed that case in December 2025 under the Florida Civil Rights Act. He alleged the company used racial and sex-based goals, quotas, and preferences in hiring and promotion.

“Every Floridian deserves to be hired, promoted and compensated based on merit, qualifications and character — not race or sex,” Uthmeier said. “This resolution ensures that Starbucks’ policies and practices fully comply with Florida’s civil rights laws. DEI can never be an excuse to violate civil rights.”

The settlement reaches beyond Florida. Starbucks’ chief legal officer must certify compliance each year for four years. The terms cover hiring, promotions, pay, executive compensation, mentorship programs, supplier selection, and board composition.

The company also agreed to stay out of groups that require members to increase racial diversity on their boards. Uthmeier’s office said the $1 million payment reimburses the state’s investigation costs.

Starbucks framed the closings as a portfolio cleanup, not a direct penalty from the Florida case. Critics of the chain’s earlier diversity programs tied the two stories together as a single retreat.