A coffee shop chain is continuing to shrink its footprint, closing several locations in recent months as it exits some markets.
The latest closure marks another shift for a company that has built its identity around creating inclusive workplaces while expanding its presence across the U.S. The move also comes as food-service operators continue to navigate higher operating costs and shifting customer traffic.
Founded in 2016 in Wilmington, North Carolina, Bitty & Beau’s Coffee describes itself as “a human rights movement disguised as a coffee shop,” employing more than 450 individuals with disabilities nationwide.
That makes for a nice tagline, but it politicizes coffee, which limits the size of its audience.
“Big brands and retailers often don’t try to stand for anything, she added. And there’s a reason for that. The main reason is it is very hard to quantify an ROI [return on investment] around it, and it doesn’t lead to sales in the near term,” Sucharita Kodali, an analyst at Forrester, told Retail Dive.
Data from Kantar showed that having a mission, or taking a stand on political issues, can drive away customers.
“Nineteen percent of Americans said they stopped or started buying from a company because of its actions or values in the past year,” according to Kantar’s survey.
It’s a situation that may have contributed to Bitty & Beau Coffee being forced to close more locations and exit a key market.
The coffee shop chain currently lists 12 brick-and-mortar locations across 10 states on its website. It also operates 12 coffee cruisers across nine states and sells products nationwide through its online store.
Bitty & Beau’s Coffee closes its final Maryland location
Bitty & Beau’s Coffee has closed its final Maryland location at 124 Dock St. in Annapolis, ending a seven-year run in the city.
The company has not publicly cited a specific reason for the closure beyond the end of the store’s lease.
“We are incredibly proud of our employees and deeply grateful to the Annapolis community for embracing our team and our mission over the past seven years,” Bitty & Beau’s Coffee said in a statement reported by CBS News Baltimore.
“While we’re sad to close this chapter, we’re thankful for everyone who has been part of our Annapolis story.”
The closure adds to a series of locations the company has shuttered across several states since late 2025.
Recent Bitty & Beau’s Coffee closures
The Annapolis closure follows four other Bitty & Beau’s Coffee locations that have closed since April 2025.
The affected coffee shops include:
- Charlotte, North Carolina: Closed at 1930 Camden Rd. in March 2026 after five years.
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Closed at 1920 Smallman St. in December 2025 after a year.
- Winston-Salem, North Carolina: Closed at 411 W. 4th St. in May 2025 after three years.
- Birmingham, Alabama: Closed at 1625 Oxmoor Rd. in April 2025 after one year.
The Pittsburgh location closed due to “Unsustainable financial loss,” according to a letter posted in the store’s front window, as reported by TribLIVE.
The Charlotte shop’s shutdown “came only after deep reflection and exploring every possible option to avoid this outcome,” the owners wrote in a note posted inside the coffee shop, according to Axios Charlotte.
The Birmingham location closed because the business model was no longer sustainable, despite efforts to find a viable solution, the owners said in a note at the front of the shop, Bham Now reported.
There was no public explanation for the Winston-Salem shutdown. The shop’s owner told Spectrum News that they were not allowed to speak about the closure.
While the reasons for some individual closures remain unknown, financial sustainability was cited in statements about the Pittsburgh and Birmingham locations.
Why coffee shops are closing
Bitty & Beau’s Coffee’s closures come amid a challenging operating environment for the food-service industry. Restaurant operators continue to deal with high labor, food, and other operating costs, while customer traffic has remained uneven.
The National Restaurant Association estimates that total expenses for an average restaurant increased 36% between 2019 and 2026. Average hourly earnings for restaurant employees have risen 41% since February 2020, while average wholesale food prices are up 35% over the same period.
Those higher costs have continued to put pressure on restaurant profitability. The National Restaurant Association reported that 33% of restaurant operators said their businesses were not profitable during the first half of 2026.
Consumer spending has also been uneven. The association projects that inflation-adjusted restaurant sales will increase by 0.8% in 2026, with higher menu prices accounting for much of the industry’s nominal sales growth.
Here’s some of my previous coverage on restaurant closures:
- Popular restaurant chain closes all locations after 55 years
- Mexican restaurant chain closes all locations in major market
- Steakhouse chain closes final location in major market
Coffee businesses have nevertheless continued to attract customers in recent years.
According to Placer.ai, the share of visits captured by mid-sized coffee chains grew from 10.8% in 2019 to 17.6% in 2024. Small coffee chains also increased their share of visits, from 3.2% in 2019 to 4.4% in 2024.
At the same time, competition in the category has intensified as major chains continue to expand. Placer.ai reported that foot traffic climbed between 2021 and early 2024 as companies, including Starbucks and Dutch Bros, expanded their footprints.
However, coffee visits in the fourth quarter of 2024 were relatively flat compared with the second and third quarters, which Placer.ai said could indicate the industry was approaching a plateau.
The recent closures leave Bitty & Beau’s Coffee with a smaller physical footprint, although the company continues to operate locations in other markets as well as its coffee cruisers and online store.
Related: Mexican restaurant chain closes all locations in major market