Jobs & Layoffs · Notice
Starbucks to close about 250 North American stores
Starbucks told the SEC its board approved closing about 1% of its North American coffeehouses, with about $300 million in charges. The filing gives no employee count.
Starbucks told the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 24, 2026 that its board of directors approved, on September 22, further actions under its "Back to Starbucks" strategy, including closing approximately 1 percent of its more than 18,000 North America coffeehouses. The company says these are stores that do not deliver the coffeehouse experience and financial performance it expects of the brand. It expects most of the closures to be completed by the end of its fiscal year 2026.
What the filing says
The filing, made under Item 2.05 of Form 8-K, puts the restructuring charges at about $300 million. Of that, about $200 million is expected to be cash, mainly for exiting store leases and for employee separation benefits. The remaining $100 million is non-cash, for the disposal and impairment of company-operated coffeehouse assets. A significant portion of the charges is expected in fiscal 2026.
A second item, Regulation FD disclosure under Item 7.01, cuts the company's outlook for store growth. Starbucks now expects about 440 net new company-operated and licensed coffeehouses worldwide in fiscal 2026, against earlier guidance of 600 to 650. It says the change reflects approximately 250 closures in North America, partly offset by more openings in its international markets.
Two numbers that do not match
One percent of more than 18,000 stores is about 180, not 250. The filing does not explain the difference, and it does not say whether the 250 counts other closures or a larger base. Until the company says, both figures belong on the record, each attributed to the item it comes from.
What the filing does not say
An 8-K names no stores, no cities and no states, and this one gives no number of employees. The cash charges include employee separation benefits, which means jobs are affected, but how many, and whether affected employees are offered transfers, is not in the document. Where a closure is large enough to require a WARN notice, the notice would name the site and the number of workers; a single coffeehouse seldom reaches that size, so many of these closures may produce no notice at all. The state listings show any that do.
If your store is affected
Ask now, in writing if you can, what the company will offer: pay through a closing date, severance, a transfer, and what happens to health coverage. If your job ends, the clocks that matter start that week: file for unemployment, decide on coverage inside the 60-day window, and read any separation agreement before signing it. The first 30 days after a layoff sets them out in order. How to read an 8-K Item 2.05 explains this kind of filing, and the layoffs tracker records it beside the other restructurings the desk has read.
What to do
- Read the filing itself; it is two short items and states the decision date, the charges and the guidance change. sec.gov
- If you work at a Starbucks store, ask your manager or the company’s partner resources line what happens to your job, pay and benefits if your store is on the list; the filing does not say.
- Check your state’s WARN listing for a notice covering your store; a single store seldom reaches the size that requires one, so its absence is not proof of anything.
Questions readers ask
- How many stores is Starbucks closing?
- The filing gives two figures. Item 2.05 says approximately 1% of its more than 18,000 North America coffeehouses, which is about 180 on the numbers given. Item 7.01, the guidance section, says approximately 250 closures in North America. The filing does not reconcile the two.
- How many jobs are affected?
- The filing does not say. It lists employee separation benefits among the cash charges, so jobs are affected, but it names no number of employees, no stores and no states.
- Does a store closing require a WARN notice?
- Only if a single site loses 50 or more employees, or a mass layoff reaches the federal thresholds. One coffeehouse rarely employs that many people, so many of these closures may not produce a notice. The state listings on this desk show any that do.
Filed under: Layoffs 2026: what companies told the SEC
How we reported this
Built from 2 primary documents linked in the Source Card. Every number was copied from the document, not from another outlet.
Written by Mirza Seraj Baig · Checked against the documents in the source card (editorial standards).