Sprinkles Cupcakes closes all stores nationwide — including two in region

Sprinkles Cupcakes, the brand behind the Internet-famous, 24/7 cupcake ATM, quietly and permanently closed its bakeries nationwide on Dec. 31, 2025. That includes three in Florida and two on the west coast of the state. 

Sprinkles' current ownership has yet to issue an official statement on the closure of its 20 locations, spread across 6 states and Washington, D.C. after 20 years in business. 

Three of those locations are in Florida: one at 717 South Dakota Ave. in Tampa’s Hyde Park neighborhood; one in the Shoppes at UTC at 8519 Cooper Creek Blvd. in Manatee County; and one at Disney Springs in the Walt Disney World Resort. 

Candace Nelson, the popular bakery chain’s founder and former owner, confirmed in an Instagram post Dec. 31 that the closures will be permanent. Nelson sold the company to a private equity group KarpReilly in 2012, she says in the post, and only learned of the closures a few days before they happened. She currently has no ownership or operational involvement in the company, the post says.

“Still, it’s surreal to see this chapter come to a close — and it’s not how I imagined the story would unfold,” the post says. 

“I thought Sprinkles would keep growing and be around forever,” Nelson says in the video. “I thought it was going to be my legacy.”

Nelson started Sprinkles Cupcakes in 2005 with her first location in Beverly Hills. The bakery quickly took off, expanding to multiple stores across California along with stand alone “Cupcake ATMs” for those looking for a sweet treat on the go, day or night.

In 2007, Sprinkles opened its first store outside of California in Dallas, Texas. Now headquartered in Austin, the first Sprinkles franchised store opened in 2022 in Utah. 

Calls to Sprinkles locations in Florida were not immediately returned, and social media accounts for all locations have been deactivated.