Starbucks plans to close its stores nationwide for three hours for in-store education and training involving more than 135,000 employees, officials said today.

The Seattle-based coffee company will close each of its nearly 7,100 company-operated stores at 5:30 p.m. and reopen at 9 p.m.

The idea is to provide a "renewed focus on espresso standards that will help ensure the exceptional quality of every beverage," officials said in a statement. "That amounts to almost a half a million hours of training in one night."