Mass. stores spared in first round of Starbucks cuts

By Elizabeth Campbell, Globe Correspondent

Got to have that grande skinny decaf caramel macchiato with an extra shot every day? Don't worry. Your Starbucks store will still be there -- at least for now.

A cool one

Starbucks stores in Massachusetts are not included in the first round of closings following the coffee company’s decision last week to shutter 600 underperforming stores nationwide.

Starbucks Coffee Co. released a list Friday of the first 50 stores to close. The list is posted on Starbucks.com and includes stores in 19 states.

The first stores will close by the end of July. The exact date may vary from store to store, the company said.

The remaining closings are staggered over the next several months through the start of fiscal year 2009, the company said. After the affected stores receive a 30-day closing notice, a list of the closing locations will be made public.

"Poor real estate decisions that were made, coupled with a very troubled economy, convinced us that these stores would not reach acceptable levels of profitability," Chief Executive Howard Schultz wrote in a message to employees on July 8.

Starbucks said it will try to place employees at the closing stores at nearby locations.

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