Good Karma Cafe in Washington Square West shutters indefinitely, citing embezzlement

The Washington Square West outpost of Good Karma Cafe closed indefinitely this weekend. It is the third branch to shutter since Good Karma workers unionized last March. One shop, at Broad and Spruce, remains open.

According to a note posted to the door on Friday, the Pine Street location had been scheduled to close for a short period this month for renovations. “However, we learned a significant sum of money, was embezzled from this location. We are going to take this time to address this serious issue with the appropriate authorities and determine the appropriate path for recovery.”

A representative from Good Karma’s union shared a statement on Monday afternoon that said the store closure and “the allleged internal theft ... has taken us all by surprise and thrown all of our lives into uncertainty and dangerous insecurity.”

“So far we have only received vague information about what’s going on and what the status of our employment is going forward. There is a lot of confusion around why the store would close because of this and why workers wouldn’t be offered shifts at the other location in the meantime, or information about if we would have a job when the store reopens,” the statement read. “One of our stores has been closed for renovations, and months later the store still isn’t back up and running ... We are scared, confused, and just want to work.”

The union representative said staff learned of the Pine Street store’s closure from an email Good Karma president Shawn Nesbit sent out on Friday evening.

On Tuesday afternoon, Nesbit shared a statement with The Inquirer:

“We have made the very difficult decision to temporarily close the Washington Square location. Good Karma prides itself on always being available to our community regardless of rain, snow, or other inclement weather 364 days per year. However, on Friday, January 6th, we learned of an internal theft and are in the midst of a criminal investigation. Those who are not involved will be invited to apply at other locations. We are also working diligently to re-open our Fitler Square location,” the statement said. “Our 2319 Walnut location is permanently closed due to the [landlord’s] sale of the building. We look forward to continuing the productive conversations with the union, and most importantly, serving our community and be open for business.”

The note posted to the door of 928 Pine St., signed “Good Karma Cafe,” thanked patrons for their understanding and directed them to the 265 S. Broad St. store. “We love this community and have been honored to serve Antique Row since October 2010. We will use this time to make additional changes to provide an even better Good Karma Cafe for our employees, community, farmers, and stakeholders.”

» READ MORE: Unions are brewing at coffee shops and restaurants. Will they change Philly’s food scene?

Good Karma workers voted to unionize in March 2022. Its store at 2319 Walnut St. closed roughly two months later, amid reports of high turnover. (The property was sold in August 2022.) That was followed by the indefinite closure of the cafe’s 22nd Street location in July, due to the need to make building and equipment repairs, according to a statement Nesbit gave at the time.

Good Karma was one of the first independent coffee shops to unionize in Philly. Its workers were inspired by organizing efforts at Starbucks and other independent cafes nationwide. In the months since, staff at several other Philly cafes have unionized, including Elixr, Ultimo, and ReAnimator. Workers at ReAnimator’s sister restaurant/bakery, Eeva, registered their intent to organize last weekend. Its owners voluntarily recognized the union on Monday morning.

This story has been updated with statements from both the Good Karma union and Good Karma president Shawn Nesbit.