New reporting has revealed 12 Ontario Starbucks locations in Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, London, Windsor, Aurora and Cornwall are among the 250 locations that abruptly closed across North America at the end of last week.
The company announced Sept. 24 it was planning to close the “underperforming” coffee shops, and that closures would happen at the end of the week. It did not specify which locations were closing.
Downtown Hamilton location closed
The company shuttered its only downtown Hamilton location with a drive-thru when the coffee shop at 151 York Blvd. closed on Sept. 26, as reported by The Hamilton Spectator.
Four Toronto locations close
The company shuttered four coffee shops in Toronto, as reported by the Toronto Sun.
The shuttered Toronto locations include:
Two Ottawa locations close
Over in the nation’s capital, the chain closed two coffee shops, as reported by CTV News.
The shuttered Ottawa locations include:
Aurora location closed
The company also closed a coffee shop in Aurora, as reported by Newmarket Today.
The Aurora location at 10 Melvin Robson Ave. closed Sept. 26.
London, Windsor and Cornwall
Other online posts also indicate a pair of locations in London and one in each of Windsor and Cornwall have also closed.
These shuttered locations include:
- 601 Richmond St., London
- 944 Hamilton Rd., London
- 2139 Huron Church Rd., Windsor
- 1400 Boundary Rd., Cornwall
A Google search for the above locations has each of them listed as permanently closed.
30-plus Starbucks locations close across Canada
The 12 Ontario locations named above are among more than 30 that have closed across the country. 6ixretail.com has reported that at least 37 locations have closed in Canada.
Starbucks has not provided a conclusive list of closed locations.
Why did Starbucks close 250 locations?
The company is in the midst of a major restructuring, which it calls its Back to Starbucks strategy.
Part of the strategy is to close underperforming locations.
The company had previously closed hundreds of stores in Canada, the U.S. and Europe in 2025, according to The Associated Press.
“Closing any coffee house is a difficult decision, and we know today’s news will be hard for the partners, customers and communities affected,” Starbucks CEO Mike Grams wrote in a letter posted on the company’s website.
“This progress has given us a clearer view of the performance of every coffee house. While most are benefiting from this overall momentum, some coffee houses continue to underperform, despite the hard work and commitment of all of you.
“Every year, we close some coffee houses and open others as part of managing our portfolio. And as we shared previously, we remain excited about the significant long-term growth opportunity ahead in North America. We are actively developing a strong pipeline of new coffee houses and remain committed to growth in North America.”
The CEO added the company is working with impacted staff and will support them through the transition, including offering transfer opportunities where available.
“For partners we are unable to place in another coffee house, we will provide severance support,” he wrote.
What is the Back to Starbucks strategy?
In addition to addressing underperforming stores, the Back to Starbucks strategy calls for 1,500 coffee house “uplifts.” These uplifts are giving selected locations a more upscale redesign, featuring softer seating, textures, artwork, greenery and local design touches.
The strategy is also rolling out the company’s “Green Apron Service” to more locations. The service is intended to offer more engagement for customers, to create a more welcoming atmosphere.
Dominik Kurek is an online editor with Metroland.
