Some coffee lovers say they will miss Starbucks after seeing their favourite location closed down as the parent company shrinks the number of outlets.
The larger Starbucks at the New Westminster SkyTrain station has closed – leaving a smaller version inside of the Safeway store in the same mall.
“It’s disappointing because it’s the quickest way to get coffee for me as I head to catch the SkyTrain,” one commuter wrote to the Record. “Time is short and lining up inside the Safeway is a more inconvenient option.”
“Replace it,” wrote another person. “We need a larger coffee shop at the station for people to grab and go.”
Starbucks has previously said its plan was to close up to 300 coffee shops across Canada. Multiple Starbucks locations have been closed next door in Burnaby, including a couple at Metropolis at Metrotown.
The Seattle-based coffeehouse and roastery chain announced the acceleration of its five-year "transformation strategy" in 2020 as it responded to changes in consumer habits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The restructuring includes adding new drive-thru locations, the expansion of delivery and a pilot of curbside pick-up only coffee shops.
The company began experimenting with pick-up only locations before the pandemic. The first Canadian Starbucks store using the new format, which measured 93 square metres or 1,000 square feet, launched in Toronto's financial district last January.
Starbucks says the changes will help the coffee chain "best meet our customers where they are now."
- With files from The Canadian Press
