Starbucks is preparing to close approximately 250 coffeehouses across North America, but the company’s operations in Trinidad and Tobago have not been identified as part of the latest restructuring.
The coffee giant announced on September 24 that it had completed a review of its North American coffeehouse portfolio and identified locations where it does not believe it can consistently deliver the experience it wants for customers and employees, or where it sees no path to acceptable financial performance.
Chief Operating Officer Mike Grams said approximately 250 coffeehouses would close, representing about one per cent of Starbucks’ more than 18,000 North American locations.
The company has not released a complete list of the affected stores. Starbucks said employees at locations being closed would be offered opportunities to transfer to other coffeehouses where possible, while severance support would be provided to workers who cannot be placed elsewhere.
For customers in Trinidad and Tobago, there is an important difference in how Starbucks operates locally.
Starbucks entered Trinidad and Tobago in 2016 through an exclusive licensing agreement with Prestige Holdings Limited, one of the country’s largest restaurant management companies. Under that arrangement, Starbucks stores in Trinidad and Tobago are exclusively owned and operated by Prestige Holdings.
The country’s first Starbucks opened at SouthPark in San Fernando in August 2016, with the brand subsequently expanding to several communities across Trinidad.
Prestige Holdings continues to operate Starbucks locally alongside other international restaurant brands, and its latest annual reporting shows continued Starbucks activity in Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana.
There has been no announcement from Starbucks or Prestige Holdings indicating that Trinidad and Tobago locations are included in the approximately 250 coffeehouses being closed.
The distinction is important because Starbucks specifically described the latest action as a review of its North American coffeehouse portfolio. The announcement should therefore not be interpreted as a worldwide closure programme affecting every country where the Starbucks brand operates.
It also does not mean that individual Starbucks locations in Trinidad and Tobago could never open, relocate or close as part of normal business decisions by the local operator. However, no such Trinidad and Tobago closures have been announced as part of the current North American restructuring.
The latest closures form part of Starbucks’ wider “Back to Starbucks” strategy under chairman and chief executive Brian Niccol. The company says that while most of its North American locations are benefiting from improvements in the business, some coffeehouses continue to underperform.
Starbucks also stressed that it remains committed to long-term growth in North America and continues to develop new locations despite closing the approximately 250 underperforming coffeehouses.
For Trinidad and Tobago, the situation is therefore different. Starbucks operates here through local licensee Prestige Holdings, and there is currently no announced connection between the Trinidad and Tobago operation and the latest North American closures.
Article and image source: facebook.com
