Caribou Coffee Closings: One Oak Park Spot Remaining Open

As Caribou Coffee looks to close locations across the country, one of the two Oak Park coffee shops will be spared, at least for now. 

The Caribou located at 136 N. Oak Park Ave. will close at noon this Sunday, April 14. The Caribou at 423 N. Harlem Ave. will remain open. 

According to a statement from Caribou, the company is closing more than 160 stores as it shifts its focus to the Minnesota market, where Caribou is based.

Only select locations will remain open, and many will eventually be converted to Peet's Coffee & Tea Company, a San Fransico-based company which has nearly 200 locations nationwide.

Caribou Cards: If you have a gift card at Caribou, it can only be used at locations until they close on the 14th. After certain locations close, you will need to use the card at the remaining locations or online atcariboucoffee.com. 

In a statement issued Monday Caribou CEO Mike Tattersfield said:

"Over the past few months, we at Caribou have revisited our business strategy, including closely evaluating our performance by market to make decisions that best position us for long-term growth. 

With that, we will be closing 80 underperforming stores on April 14th, and an additional 88 coffeehouses across Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Georgia, Illinois and Eastern Wisconsin will be converted to Peet’s Coffee & Tea locations over the next 12 to 18 months.

Going forward, Caribou Coffee will be made up of 468 locations across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Western Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, North Carolina, Denver, and ten international markets. While the decisions we’ve made have been difficult for our team in Minneapolis, as well as our team members across the country and our guests and fans everywhere, we are working to make this transition as seamless as possible for the Caribou community.

We look forward to continuing to deliver extraordinary experiences to our guests and fans, and thank everyone for their passion and commitment to Caribou. For any questions, please contact 888.CARIBOU."

On Twitter, Caribou said while some of its stores are closing, more than 400 will remain open.

Caribou is based in Minneapolis, Minn. And has more than 500 company-owned locations in 16 states, employing more than 6,000. In 2009, the company had $262 million in revenues.

The decision relates to a corporate acquisition of Caribou by Joh. A. Benckiser Group (JAB) in December. The same company had also acquired another large coffee company, Peet's Coffee and Tea Inc., in October. 

There are 66 stores in Illinois, but exactly which will close was uncertain. 

A Boycott Caribou page has been created on Facebook. So far, it has 82 likes. 

"Don't forget to show your local Caribou and their employees your support this last week. I know it will very tough for them after all the great relationships they have built over the years with their customers," a status update on the page said. 

—Patch editor Mary Ann Lopez contributed to this article.