Vestavia Hills Starbucks permanently closes its doors despite community protest

Following Starbucks announcing it would be closing a slew of locations across the country, one local Starbucks has permanently shut its doors. 

The Liberty Park location at 3186 Rush Street Liberty Park in Vestavia Hills was given two-days notice ahead of their closure, according to posts on local Facebook pages. 

Their last day open was Saturday, Sept. 27. 

Vestavia Hills community comes together to try and stop the closure

Once community members learned the news, many rallied on social media to try and keep their local coffee spot open. 

Some folks used local Facebook pages to encourage people to contact local and upper management, but on Monday, Sept. 29, the store was vacant and much of the signage was removed.

Community members shared memories made at the location, including one middle school Bible study group that met there every week. 

On its last day open, some people came to the Liberty Park store to show their support and brought signs to protest the closure.

Despite the support from Vestavia Hills citizens, a statement from Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol said the stores that would be closing were underperforming:

“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… 

“Each year, we open and close coffeehouses for a variety of reasons, from financial performance to lease expirations. This is a more significant action that we understand will impact partners and customers.”

Why did Starbucks close the store?

The Liberty Park Starbucks in Vestavia Hills is one of just a few locations in Alabama that was shuttered. 

The other locations, according to a publicly-managed spreadsheet from the Starbucks community on Reddit, are:

• Eufaula — 811 Eufaula Ave.
• Montgomery — 6501 Atlanta Highway
• Mobile — 3255 Airport Blvd.

On Thursday, Sept. 25, the Starbucks corporation announced it would close about 1% of its locations. The U.S. had 17,230 locations at the end of 2025 Q3. 

The announcement from Starbucks said that by the end of the fiscal year — which ended over the weekend — it would have “nearly 18,300” locations across the U.S. and Canada. 

This move is part of the company’s “Back to Starbucks” strategy, “which focuses on exceptional service, simplified routines, and deeper customer connections,” an investor report says. 

Also as part of that strategy, Starbucks laid off 900 non-retail employees in addition to closing many open positions. 

Starbucks’ message to customers

In the window and at the drive-thru of the Vestavia Hills location — as well as the other closed locations across the country — letters were posted explaining the closures:

“To our amazing customers, 

We’ve made the incredibly difficult decision to close this Starbucks location. We know this may be hard to hear — because this isn’t just any store. It’s your coffeehouse, a place woven into your daily rhythm, where memories were made, and where meaningful connections with our partners grew over the years. We’re deeply grateful for the community that’s been built here.

We know many of you will be thinking of your favorite partner, and we’re working closely to support our partners through this transition. 

Our commitment to creating welcoming, memorable experiences remains unchanged. We hope you’ll visit us at a nearby Starbucks where we’d be honored to continue sharing moments with you. 

Thank you for being part of our story. We look forward to seeing you again.

With heartfelt gratitude, 

The Starbucks Company”

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