Another Sacramento Starbucks just closed. It was first in the region to unionize

A Starbucks coffee shop in downtown Sacramento quietly closed its doors for good.

“Sorry we missed you,” a sign posted on the shop’s door read. “This store is permanently closed, but we look forward to welcoming you at another location.”

The coffee shop at 630 K St. in Downtown Commons officially shut its doors May 20, a Starbucks spokesperson confirmed Tuesday.

It neighbored the Golden 1 Center, Sauced and Kimpton Sawyer Hotel.

Menus and merchandise were recently stripped from the coffee shop, although some chairs and tables were left behind. The LED signage was still affixed to the building as of Saturday.

It is unclear exactly why the location shut down.

“As a standard course of business, we continually evaluate our store portfolio, using various criteria to ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers,” the spokesperson said. “We do not take the decision to close stores lightly.”

The closure comes about a month after an East Sacramento Starbucks closed its doors.

What’s the story behind downtown Sacramento Starbucks?

The downtown Starbucks was originally a location for the chain’s Reserve Bar specialty brand, which offers a line of exclusive and “most extraordinary coffees.”

The Bee reported that the Starbucks Reserve brand was coming to the city in 2017.

The Downtown Commons location temporarily closed four years ago and reopened in 2021 without the Reserve branding, according to a Reddit post at the time.

While more than 3,200 shops in the United States and Canada offer Reserve coffee, there are only nine Starbucks Reserve stores across the world, according to chain’s website.

Downtown coffee shop was the first in region to unionize

In 2023, the downtown Starbucks became the chain’s first store in the region to unionize.

Employees voted to form a union due to safety concerns, The Sacramento Bee reported at the time.

“We’ve seen a lot of aggression toward different people (working) in our store or toward different customers, and we decided at one point that enough was enough,” barista and union organizer Maizie Jensen told The Bee.

Starbucks addressed safety concerns by trimming the location’s hours, locking bathrooms and removing seating, The Bee reported. Employees also received training on de-escalation, reviewed safety protocols and got guidance on reporting incidents.

A Starbucks spokesperson said Tuesday morning that the company is working with the union to help employees.

“We have engaged Workers United to collaborate on next steps, including transfer options, for the seven partners currently employed at this location,” the spokesperson said.

Safety concerns reported at local Starbucks

The downtown Starbucks wasn’t the chain’s only location in the area to deal with safety issues.

A Starbucks at 15th and Broadway in Sacramento’s Land Park neighborhood closed in 2022 after confronting safety concerns such as an “open-air drug market,” The Bee reported.

On April 21, a Starbucks shop shut its doors at 1401 Alhambra Blvd. in East Sacramento.

“As a standard course of business, we regularly evaluate our store portfolio to determine how we can best meet our community and customers’ needs,” a Starbucks spokesperson said at the time, “and ensure partners are supported in crafting beverages in a warm and welcoming environment.”

In 2023, critics accused Starbucks of shutting down stores as a union-busting move.

This story was originally published May 28, 2024 at 10:41 AM.