Los Angeles, Sept 9 - Starbucks Corp has taken 30 U.S. stores off its closure list after their performance improved considerably, Chief Financial Officer Troy Alstead said at an investor conference on Wednesday.
The Seattle-based coffee chain, which has been slashing costs to compensate for dwindling customer visits, had announced plans to close almost 1,000 stores around the world as the worst recession in decades drove consumers to tighten their belts.
The stores removed from the closure list had improved to the point where they were contributing to company results, Alstead said at the Goldman Sachs Global Retail Conference.
Among other things, Seattle-based Starbucks has reduced stores' wasted coffee and milk, made employee scheduling more efficient and, in some cases, renegotiated rents. The company also plans to upgrade its computerized cash registers, which some analysts say could bring further productivity gains.
Starbucks was among the first high-profile U.S. businesses to show signs of stress when the economy weakened in late 2007, due in part to its aggressive expansion into areas where housing boomed and then busted.
Meanwhile, McDonald's Corp is making a run at Starbucks' core business with its newly launched line of McCafe coffee drinks.