Starbucks is having a rough 2025.
(After also having a rough 2024.)
Rough enough that they’ve now decided to phase out their Pick Up stores, which will result in around 80-90 store closures or conversions into full-size cafes.
(California is particularly hard-hit.)
Why this is happening
Starbucks has had six – SIX! – back-to-back quarters of same-store sales declines, so management is clearly casting around for something big to change.
They’ve settled on exiting the Pick Up store concept nationwide, with the wind-down planned to be finished by end of FY 2026.
Of course, the Pick Up stores were focused on – guess what – mobile orders, and they were designed for maximum efficiency. CEO Brian Niccol explained why by simply saying: the Pick Up format felt “overly transactional” and lacked the warmth and human connection at the heart of the Starbucks brand.
The path forward
Starbucks is newly focused on making the Starbucks visit an experience. They’re planning to invest over $100,000 per store on things like comfy couches, nice chairs, and other stuff to make the cafes nicer.
And it’s not like mobile ordering is going anywhere – it’s about 31% of total orders – but there’s just a recognition that Starbucks has to be a warm and inviting place for people to pop into (or come in and stay awhile).
That’s the theory, anyway.
What do you think? Right move? Wrong move?
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