Starbucks Could Go Mobile or Drive Thru Only Due to COVID-19

According to a letter to Starbucks stakeholders this week from CEO Kevin Johnson, some of the wildly popular coffee shops might be changing some things due to the threat of coronavirus.

Some of the 31,526 stores world wide could possibly be closing seating areas and restricting service to mobile and drive-through orders.

Johnson said "This means that as we navigate this dynamic situation community-by-community and store-by-store, we may adapt the store experience by limiting seating to improve social distancing, enable mobile order-only scenarios for pickup via the Starbucks app or delivery via Uber Eats, or in some cases, only the drive-through will be open”

He also said closing stores should be a last resort, even though a Seattle area location was briefly closed earlier this week because one of the baristas tested positive for the coronavirus. 13 employees were self-quarantined, and the store was re-opened the next day. If your daily caffeine fix is at Starbucks, stay tuned.