The Castro is losing its second major coffee shop in four months, with the popular Market Street location of Peet's set to close later this month, and more Peet's locations are also getting axed.

There was a time not long ago when the Castro neighborhood was dealing with a glut of coffeeshops, with a new one seemingly opening every month. But now, in early 2026, the neighborhood is living without its once popular Starbucks on 18th Street — nicknamed Bearbucks — which closed in September. And news just arrived via Hoodline that Peet's Coffee is shuttering its longtime shop at 2257 Market Street.

The move comes as Peet's, which ceased to be an independent company in 2012 when it was acquired by German conglomerate JAB Holding, is being traded once more. The company, now merged with Dutch conglomerate Jacobs Douwe Egberts as JDE Peet's, was acquired by Keurig Dr. Pepper (KDP) last year. (Interestingly, Keurig, then known as Keurig Green Mountain, was acquired 10 years ago by the same German company, JAB Holding, that acquired Peet's, until it spun off as a private company and acquired Dr Pepper Snapple Group in 2018.)

A press release about the Peet's acquisition last summer discussed "cost synergies," and referred to "KDP’s disruptive legacy." That disruption now comes in the form of  30 local Peet's store closures, including locations in the Castro and Cole Valley (919 Cole Street).

KDP had declined to say where the other closures are happening, but clearly more are coming, to be announced in the coming days. The Castro shop will be closing by the end of January.

"Peet’s has made the difficult decision to close a number of Peet’s Coffee locations by the end of January 2026," said company spokesperson Stephanie O'Brien in a statement to Hoodline. "These closures reflect a broader effort to align our business with long-term growth priorities and current market conditions."

O'Brien added, "We are deeply grateful to our incredible employees and loyal customers for their continued commitment to the brand. As we move forward, we remain dedicated to the quality, craftsmanship, and heritage that have defined Peet’s for the past 60 years, while embracing new opportunities to innovate and grow."

Much like other Bay Area brands that went global, like Blue Bottle Coffee and Ghirardelli Chocolate, Peet's can't claim to be a local enterprise with any particular interest in its local clientele anymore.

Peet's was founded in Berkeley in 1966 as Peet's Coffee, Tea & Spices, near the Gourmet Ghetto at Vine and Walnut streets, where the original shop still stands. Founder Alfred Peet was born in the Netherlands to a father who owned a coffee company, and he later apprenticed at the famous London tea company Twinings, developing a love for tea as well.

When he relocated to San Francisco at the age of 35 in 1955, as the story goes, Peet was dismayed to see the sort of swill that Americans were drinking and calling coffee, saying, "I came to the richest country in the world, so why are they drinking the lousiest coffee?" He set out to change that, and Peet's Coffee, Tea & Spices was born 11 years later.

Peet famously, in 1971, trained the three young entrepeneurs who went on to found Starbucks, and served as the company's coffee supplier and roaster in its early years, until 1973.

Jerry Baldwin, one of those Starbucks c0-founders, bought Peet's four locations in 1984, selling his shares in Starbucks in 1987. Peet's would go on to expand widely and have an IPO in 2001.

Alfred Peet retired to Ashland, Oregon, where he passed away in 2007.

Coffee consolidation is happening across the board, with the once-ubiquitous Starbucks also slashing locations by the hundreds in the last two years.

The number of currently operating Peet's Coffee shops in the US is not clear — estimates seem to be around 280 company-owned locations as of late last year. There are 22 Peet's locations in San Francisco alone, and it sounds like a wide swath might be going away soon.