Fri, Sep 05 2008
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Published July 02, 2008 10:09 am - Seattle-based Starbucks Coffee on Tuesday announced plans to close approximately 600 under-performing, company-operated stores in the U.S. Economic woes: Tahlequah Starbucks to close? By JOSH NEWTON TAHLEQUAH DAILY PRESS — Seattle-based Starbucks Coffee on Tuesday announced plans to close approximately 600 under-performing, company-operated stores in the U.S.
But a Starbucks spokesperson said Tuesday evening the list of stores expected to close has not been finalized. “Out of respect and dignity for our partners [employees], and our desire to share this information with impacted partners first, we are not publishing a full list of the stores,” the spokesperson said. “Individual stores will be notified by their district manager and/or regional director approximately 30 days prior to the anticipated closure date.” Concurrently, the spokesperson said, the approximately 6,600 remaining U.S. company-operated stores will be notified that they are not affected. Stores identified for closure are spread across “all major U.S. markets,” with approximately 70 percent of them opened since fiscal year 2006, according to the spokesperson. The Tahlequah Starbucks opened its doors Jan. 26, 2007. “Throughout Starbucks history, we have closed a small number of stores each year. Today’s announcement reflects a greater number of closures after an intensified review of our entire U.S. company-operated store portfolio,” said the spokesperson. The Starbucks official said the company expects to place many of the affected partners into available positions at nearby Starbucks stores. “Those partners who are not offered a comparable position within a reasonable distance of their current location will be offered a severance payment to aid in their transition,” the spokesperson said. All affected partners – including full- and part-time – will be eligible for severance based on job title and current pay rate. CEO Howard Schultz said in a statement released Tuesday that the decision is, by far, “the most angst-ridden decision we have made in my more than 25 years with Starbucks...” “... But we realize that part of transforming a company is our ability to look forward, while pursuing innovation and reflecting, in many cases, with 20-20 hindsight, on the decisions that we made in the past, both good and bad. However, I strongly believe that our best days are ahead of us,” said Schultz. Starbucks says it will attempt to reach out to customers affected by the closures in a number of ways, including helping them find other Starbucks locations through www.starbucks.com. Store closures are expected to begin this month, and continue through March 2009. Starbucks officials are predicting the company will now open less than 200 new U.S. company-operated stores in fiscal 2009. 
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