In September 2024, when Brian Niccol was tapped to lead Starbucks, becoming the fourth CEO in nearly a many years, the company was faltering. In the previous year and a half, Starbucks had experienced slowing customer traffic, its stock had lost over 22% of its value and the company faced pressure from activist investors. Dubbed a “turnaround expert,” Niccol was tasked with revamping Starbucks. As CEO, Niccol promised to deliver premium-priced, customizable drinks in a third-place coffeehouse with top-notch customer service, all at a fast-food pace.
Niccol rolled out a number of corporate initiatives to transform Starbucks, including an updated mobile-ordering algorithm, changes to its staffing model, new mandates around baristas writing names and notes on cups, a new barista uniform policy, menu simplification, and restricting bathroom and water access to customers who make in-store purchases. Despite these initiatives, Starbucks continues to face serious performance problems. Starbucks shares have fallen over 17% in the last twelve months. US foot traffic continues to be down. And Starbucks has posted flat or declining US sales for seven consecutive quarters.