Starbucks Took 15% of This Coffee Company's Business in One Blow. Years Later, the Tables Have Turned

Helen Russell (right) and Brooke McDonnell, co-founders of Equator Coffees, which won the US Small Business Administration’s National Small Business of the Year award in 2016. (Credit: Equator Coffees Website)

Starbucks is pulling back. On 24 September the chain said it would close about 250 underperforming cafes across North America, roughly 1% of its more than 18,000 locations there, and take about $300M (£226M) in restructuring charges as part of chief executive Brian Niccol's turnaround. Hundreds of miles south of its Seattle headquarters, a much smaller rival is expanding.

Equator Coffees, a roaster founded in a Marin County garage in 1995, is on track to reach roughly $40M (£30M) in revenue this year, co-founder and executive chair Helen Russell said. The company runs 12 cafes, supplies hundreds of wholesale accounts, and has more than doubled in size since the pandemic.