Two Pittsburgh Starbucks locations to close

Two Pittsburgh Starbucks locations to close

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As Starbucks announced its plans to close “underperforming” locations nationwide, along with about 900 non-retail employees, at least two Pittsburgh-area locations will be part of the closures. 

KDKA-TV has learned that they include the location on East Carson Street in the South Side, as well as the Lawrenceville location on Butler Street. 

According to the Starbucks website, both locations will close on Saturday, September 27. 

Starbucks CEO says company will close underperforming locations

CEO Brian Niccol said this week that the company’s decision to close underperforming locations is due to being “unable to create the physical environment our customers and partners expect.” 

The plan will cost Starbucks $1 billion, and the majority of those costs will be related to store closures, including about $450 million in costs for breaking leases early. 

“[W]e identified coffeehouses where we’re unable to create the physical environment our customers and partners expect, or where we don’t see a path to financial performance, and these locations will be closed,” Niccol wrote in a letter sent to employees. 

Starbucks did not disclose exactly how many or which locations will be closing, but customers who have the Starbucks app will be able to see which locations are closed when the app updates. 

“Each year, we open and close coffeehouses for a variety of reasons, from financial performance to lease expirations. This is a more significant action that we understand will impact partners and customers,” Niccol added. 

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Patrick Damp

Patrick Damp is a web producer for CBS Pittsburgh. A Pittsburgh native who grew up watching KDKA-TV, Patrick studied journalism at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. After half a decade in sports communication, Patrick decided to pursue his dream of working in journalism in his hometown and joined the CBS Pittsburgh team in 2019.