Starbucks has announced its closure of pickup-only stores, which consist of 80 to 90 Starbucks locations nationwide.
This decision is an extension of the company’s “Back to Starbucks” initiative that started this January. The initiative focuses on emphasizing the coffeehouse experience by improving beverage quality, creating welcoming spaces and refining customer service.
Back to Starbucks “[focuses] on what has always set us apart: a welcoming coffeehouse where people gather and where we serve the finest coffee, handcrafted by our skilled baristas,” says Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol.
Pickup-only stores were first implemented at Penn Station in New York in 2019, with the purpose of streamlining coffee runs. These stores only allowed the customer to order online and pick up at a window, which aligned with Starbucks’ values of speed and convenience at the time. Now, Niccol said that the stores felt overly transactional… lacking the warmth and human connection that defines our brand.”
Along with bringing back the condiment bar, writing messages on cups, giving free refills and other reforms brought back to the coffeehouse, the pickup stores will cease to exist starting in 2026.
Though this closure will affect many stores across the United States, including five in the Seattle area, Starbucks highlighted that mobile orders are still prominent, making up 31% of transactions. These orders can still exist within normal Starbucks coffeehouses.
Some baristas seem to agree with the new change. “I think the new initiative makes sense for Starbucks since they are trying to lean into a more ‘human’ experience with personalized connections,” Amelia, a barista from the Greater Seattle Area whose name is not disclosed for the sake of anonymity, comments. “I think the closures won’t impact other stores or affect our work so much, since they already have been training us on personalizing experiences more.”
“However, I do think it’s slightly strange to say you’re closing stores due to a lack of warmth when most of their money seems to come from drive-thru or mobile order transactions, which inherently lack warmth due to the nature of those channels of ordering,” Amelia adds. She and many baristas speculate that the real reasons for the closures are a problem within the company. “I know the pickup store I worked at closed because of low sales. I had lots of regulars I connected with, despite the model of grab-and-go … it was a great model for not only busy professionals, but busy parents, tourists and local businesses.”
The Seattle-based coffeehouse has worked hard to reclaim its original purpose as a cafe. While some locations have seen success, Starbucks still faces challenges with sharing the “Back to Starbucks” vision with customers in a fast-paced, automated world with no time to sit down and chat.
