Starbucks Is Abruptly Closing 16 Locations—Here's Why
Starbucks has always advertised as a community hub. This "third place between work and home" has superb Wi-Fi and is perfect for coffee
chats with friends and neighbors. That image is disintegrating in locations where staff and guest safety is a major concern.
Starbucks said on July 11 that it will permanently close 16 metropolitan stores with high violence. It has six locations in Seattle, its hometown.
According to The Wall Street Journal, six Los Angeles stores, two Portland stores, and one Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. store will close permanently.
A Starbucks spokeswoman said drug usage, theft, and assault were common in these stores. Employee crime complaints and the chain's failed attempts
According to The Seattle Times, Starbucks senior vice presidents for U.S. operations Denise Nielsen and Debbie Stroud wrote to employees
that the closures are a result of "personal safety, racism, lack of access to health care, a growing mental health crisis, rising drug use and more" at the stores.
The coffee business said in June that it may adjust its open-to-all bathroom policy to improve safety. The company adopted the more
inclusive policy in 2018 after two Philadelphia store customers were arrested for using the bathroom without buying anything generated public outrage.