Starbucks’ September 2025 restructuring plan estimated about $1 billion in costs for coffeehouse closures, support-organization changes and related activities. The company said roughly 90% of the expenses would be in North America. That estimate described the original plan; it is not the same as the charges reported for later fiscal 2026 actions or a separate closure round reported in September 2026.
What Starbucks announced in September 2025
In a September 23, 2025 filing, Starbucks said its board had approved a restructuring plan combining coffeehouse closures with further transformation of the support organization. The company framed the moves as part of its “Back to Starbucks” strategy. Its approximately $1 billion figure was a projection for store closures, support-organization transformation and other restructuring activities—not a final audited tally of the plan’s eventual cost. Starbucks estimated that about 90% of the expenses would be attributable to North America. Starbucks’ September 23, 2025 Form 8-K.
How Starbucks estimated the $1 billion cost
The company’s announced estimates divided the expected costs among employee benefits, store assets and lease-related expenses. Starbucks also characterized much of the total as non-cash charges or future cash expenditures; those are distinct ways of describing the estimated costs, not additional amounts to add to the breakdown.
| Estimated category | Amount and scope |
|---|---|
| Employee separation benefits | $150 million, Starbucks’ September 2025 estimate. |
| Store asset disposal and impairment | $400 million, estimated for company-operated store assets. |
| Lease-related and other costs | $450 million, primarily for accelerated amortization of right-of-use lease assets and other lease costs when stores closed before their contractual lease terms ended. |
Separately, Starbucks estimated approximately $400 million in non-cash asset impairment and disposal charges and approximately $600 million in future cash expenditures for employee separation benefits and lease exit costs. These figures and categories come from the company’s September 2025 filing; they are estimates, not independently verified final spending.
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Why stores were selected for closure
Starbucks said it assessed coffeehouses for both the customer-facing environment and a viable path to financial performance. In a September 25, 2025 message, chairman and CEO Brian Niccol said locations would close if the company could not create the physical environment customers and employees expected, or did not see a path to financial performance. Niccol’s September 25, 2025 message.
The announcement did not provide a complete location-by-location list. Starbucks said company-operated North American stores would decline by about 1% in fiscal 2025 after accounting for both openings and closures. It also expected to finish that fiscal year with nearly 18,300 total locations in the U.S. and Canada, including both company-operated and licensed stores. Those management figures describe the overall store base, not the number of closures alone.
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What the plan said about employees
Niccol’s message announced the elimination of about 900 non-retail partner roles. For employees at closing coffeehouses, Starbucks said it would seek transfers to nearby locations where possible and provide severance support when it could not immediately place them. These were company statements about planned support; they do not establish the final outcome for every affected employee.
How the original plan differs from later actions
Subsequent closure counts and charges should be read in their own reporting periods and scopes, rather than added to the original $1 billion estimate as though they were a single final bill.
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| Period or announcement | Reported closures or target | Reported charges or estimate | Scope and attribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q4 fiscal 2025 | 584 stores closed in North America | Not stated in the cited fiscal 2025 results for this figure | Starbucks reported the closures under the Back to Starbucks restructuring plan. Fiscal 2025 Q4 and full-year results. |
| First three quarters of fiscal 2026, through June 28, 2026 | 247 stores closed under fiscal 2025 restructuring plans | $115.9 million in charges related to those plans during the period | Starbucks’ June 2026 Form 10-Q also described separate fiscal 2026 plans: transforming the global support organization and non-retail facilities, and reducing future operational complexity at Reserve and Roastery locations. Those separate plans should not be treated as part of the fiscal 2025 closure-plan charge figure. Starbucks’ Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 28, 2026. |
| Separate closure round reported in September 2026 | Approximately 250 locations targeted | Approximately $300 million in associated restructuring charges | Associated Press reported the later round separately from the 2025 plan. AP also reported that Starbucks expected 1,500 stores to be retrofitted by September 30, 2026; that was a reported expectation, not confirmation the target was completed. Associated Press report on the September 2026 closure round. |
What to take from the $1 billion figure
The $1 billion number was Starbucks’ estimated cost for a particular 2025 restructuring scope, with most expenses expected in North America. Later filings and reporting documented additional execution and a separate later closure round, but those figures have their own periods and scopes. Without a complete location list or final cost tally for the original plan, the estimate should not be read as either a confirmed final bill or a count of stores closing.
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- HOT OR ICED COFFEE: Enjoy your coffee your way—brew it hot or over ice for a refreshing pick-me-up. Add your favorite coffee creamer for a personalized touch, or enjoy balanced, black coffee for a satisfying sip any time of day
- BREW IT YOUR WAY: Enjoy the same delicious Starbucks taste, no matter how you make your cup—whether it’s a rich French press, classic drip brew or smooth pour-over
- CAFÉ QUALITY: Starbucks adheres to the highest quality standards—shipping you the same artfully crafted Arabica coffee beans brewed in Starbucks cafés
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- FRESH TASTE—Starbucks adheres to the highest quality standards—shipping you the same carefully roasted 100% arabica coffee beans we brew in our cafés
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- ETHICALLY SOURCED—Starbucks is committed to 100% ethical coffee sourcing in partnership with Conservation International
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