The Castro Starbucks (4094 18th Street), locally called Bearbucks, will permanently close after nearly 30 years in the neighborhood.
The closure comes after Starbucks announced on Thursday that it would be closing around 120 stores nationwide. Castro Starbucks' last day will be Saturday, September 27.
Hoodline reached out to Starbucks for comment, but spokesperson Sam Jefferies declined to confirm the store's closure. However, the Starbucks website lists the location as closed beginning on Sunday.
A note in the window confirms the closure, "We've made the incredibly difficult decision to close this Starbucks location by the end of this week."
A note in the window announces that the Castro Starbucks will close. | Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
"We know this may be hard to hear - because this isn't just any store," writes Starbucks. "It's your coffeehouse, a place woven into your daily rhythm."
Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol stated the closures are a part of its 'Back to Starbucks' plan to "deliver a warm and welcoming space with a great atmosphere and a seat for every occasion."
"We identified coffeehouses where we’re unable to create the physical environment our customers and partners expect, or where we don’t see a path to financial performance, and these locations will be closed,' added Niccol.
The Castro Starbucks will close on Saturday. | Image: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
The Castro Starbucks was one of those stores. "We're deeply grateful for the community that's been built here."
Starbucks adds that it's "working closely to support our partners through this transition."
When Hoodline visited the Castro Starbucks on Friday, the store was abuzz with conversation about the announcement as multiple customers placed their orders.
Inside Castro Starbucks on Friday, September 26. | Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
Starbucks has already closed six locations in San Francisco this year, most of them downtown. And this wave of closures appears to include locations at Fisherman's Wharf and in the Fillmore, as the Chronicle reports.
It was only two years ago that Starbucks remodeled the Castro shop, removing all the seating in a switch to a grab-and-go format. Only recently did a small number of tables and chairs return inside the store.
Hoodline readers will recall the Castro Starbucks was shuttered for four months between December 2021 and April 2022 while facility issues were addressed.
Longtime Castro residents will recall that in 2012, the Castro Starbucks was remodeled and the seating was rearranged.
The Castro Starbucks was also the first location in San Francisco to unionize in 2022.
Artwork depicting the Castro Starbucks prior to 2012 remodel. | Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
“On behalf of the Castro Merchants Association, I am saddened to see Starbucks close in the Castro," Castro Merchants president Nate Bourg tells Hoodline. "We thank them for supporting our community, including providing coffee at our monthly member meetings."
"While we’ll miss them, we’re optimistic that a new, exciting business will soon enliven this prime 18th Street location," added Bourg. "We also encourage neighbors and visitors to continue supporting the many other outstanding coffee shops in our neighborhood.”
While the Castro Coffee Cluster has contracted in recent years, the closure of this Starbucks will likely hit hard, as it was popular amongst many Castro residents, workers, and tourists.
The Castro Starbucks was formerly home to Pasqua Coffee, a San Francisco-based retail coffee chain that was named The Pedestrian Café when it opened in 1983. Pasqua started as a single store and grew to almost 60 locations in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York City before it was acquired by Starbucks Coffee in 1999.
