USC to replace small coffee shop business with new Starbucks location

Two coffee stands parked outside USC’s Keck Hospital for more than 20 years are slated to close to make way for a new Starbucks location.

The coffee carts, owned by Nickii Park, are the only source of income for the business owner. Since the university decided not to renew her contract, the future of the business remains uncertain.

University officials notified Park in February 2022 that it would not renew its agreement with her. She received her official termination letter in July, reported the Daily Trojan, which first shared the news.

The business was initially slated to close in September but Park received an extension to continue operations until sometime in October.

“It was super ultra impacting my life,” Park told the Daily Trojan. “I was in shock, and I couldn’t eat or sleep.”

The news also came as a surprise to students, who have since started a petition urging school officials to reverse the decision.

The online petition currently has 326 signatures, and more than 1,000 people signed another petition Park had on her cart for two days before university officials told the her to take it down.

The new Starbucks location will be operated by USC Hospitality and will be the second location on the Health Sciences Campus.

KTLA reached out to USC Keck School of Medicine but didn’t receive a comment in time for publication.