The once-trendy, San Francisco-born coffeeshop chain Philz Coffee has struck a deal to be sold off to a private equity firm for $145 million, but any employees who bought stock are getting the shaft, as they won’t see a penny of that money.

If you didn't think that the once-gritty cafe chain Philz Coffee was a sellout company before, it's hard to argue against that claim now. Mission Local reported Friday that Philz Coffee is being sold to an LA-based private equity firm for $145 million, based on their review of documents sent to stockholders.  

You would think that would be great news for those stockholders, many of whom are current and former Philz employees. But not so, as the terms of the sale render their stock absolutely worthless.

Mission Local says that the employees were issued what is called “common stock.” And according to the terms of the sale document sent to stockholders, “All Common Stock will be canceled for no consideration and all Options will be canceled and extinguished for no consideration.”

“Philz ran out of money. That’s really what it is,” one anonymous former employee, who bought tens of thousands of dollars of that stock, told Mission Local. “When I saw the price, I thought, well, I hope I can get some of my money back.”

This may not be totally shocking, given the culture change at Philz Coffee over the last decade or so. The place was originally just a converted liquor store at 24th and Folsom streets, and a popular niche shop in the early days of the third-wave coffee movement. But once the tech boom hit, founder Phil Jaber and his son Jacob Jaber started seeking (and receiving) tens of millions of dollars in venture capital funding, Philz became the trendy coffee among tech CEOs, and also started engaging in some creepy wi-fi monitoring practices on its patrons.

That economic bubble seems to have burst. The company laid off hundreds during the pandemic, closed many locations including the original 24th Street shop, and moved its headquarters from SF to Oakland last year.  

The sale is not yet final, but is expected to close on August 8.

Related: Philz Coffee Lays Off 181 Workers After Protests Over Safety Practices, Discounts For Cops [SFist]

Image: Ahn E via Yelp