Coffee giant Starbucks is closing about 250 of its location and has launched a rollout of its coffeehouse uplifts across Canada, part of its “Back to Starbucks” strategy to bring “more comfortable seating, warmer designs, and neighbourhood-inspired details” to its locations.
The company says a refresh of Starbucks cafés is designed to bring customers back to what they love most about the coffeehouse: great coffee, craft, connection, and community.
At the same time, in a note, Mike Grams, the company’s Chief Operating Officer, said: “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. As a result, we will close approximately 250 coffeehouses later this week. This represents approximately 1% of our more than 18,000 North America coffeehouses.
“Every year we close some coffeehouses and open others as part of managing our portfolio. And as we shared previously, we remain excited about the significant long-term growth opportunity ahead in North America. We are actively developing a strong pipeline of new coffeehouses and remain committed to growth in North America.”
Starbucks said customers visiting their uplifted neighbourhood coffeehouses will experience:
- More – and cozier – seating, including couches and lounge chairs that invite customers to stay awhile.
- Warmer colours, textures, and layered designs that create a relaxed, welcoming feel.
- Locally-inspired touches, including neighborhood inspired art, photography and design elements that reflect neighbourhood’s character.
- A redesigned espresso bar offering a closer view of the craft behind every beverage.
- Improved order flow, including dedicated space for customers ordering ahead in the Starbucks app.
“We want our coffeehouses to feel welcoming, where our customers will want to stay longer, connect more and feel at home. Every uplift starts with the neighborhood and is tailored to reflect the community it serves,” said Dawn Clark, senior vice president, global design & concepts at Starbucks.
“We sat in each store and asked ourselves, ‘What could we keep? What’s great about this? What’s the history of this place? What is this community like?’” she said. “… At that point it felt like we had a whole new approach to design, which was much more rooted in our heritage and will create an experience that is more richly sensorial.”
By the end of 2026, more than 1,000 coffeehouses in North America will be uplifted, with plans for more in the years to come, said Starbucks.
“Early results from uplifted coffeehouses in New York City and Southern California are already showing promise. Customers are staying longer, visiting more often, and sharing positive feedback. This transformation goes beyond design — it is about shaping the future of gathering spaces, strengthening community ties and creating places people love,” it said.
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