(Reuters) -Brian Niccol took over as Starbucks' CEO in August 2024, as the coffee chain struggled with weak demand for its pricey lattes in the U.S. and contemplated selling a stake in its China division.
His turnaround strategy is predicated on cutting costs and enticing customers with a more welcoming coffeehouse experience - a campaign Niccol calls "Back to Starbucks."
Date Action
Oct 22, Starbucks suspends its annual forecast as
2024 Niccol calls for a fundamental change to
the company's strategy
by overhauling its
cafes, simplifying its menu and reducing
customer wait times.
Dec 2024 Talks with the union representing its
baristas fall apart. Unionized baristas
at some locations go on strike during
peak holiday period
2025: Jan Starbucks reverses its "open-door policy"
15 which gave non-paying customers free
access to its cafes and restrooms
Jan 28 Niccol names Mike Grams, former executive
at Taco Bell, as North America chief
stores officer, and puts Meredith
Sandland in charge of store development
and design.
Feb 24 Starbucks says it will cut 1,100
corporate roles as Niccol pushes to
invest in improving in-store staffing at
key locations in the U.S.
April 29 Niccol pauses rollout of "capital heavy"
Siren System store revamp program,
launched under former CEO Howard Schultz
June 9 Says it will lower some prices in China
to keep up with competition and cater to
consumers cautious about spending
June 11 Niccol accelerates roll-out of new
staffing model at U.S. stores to improve
the speed of drive-through orders and
better sequence the "bottleneck" of
mobile orders
Aug 18 Starbucks caps hikes for all North
America employees at a modest 2%
Sept 25 Niccol lays off around 900 corporate and
other non-retail employees and closes
hundreds of stores, including Starbucks'
iconic, unionized Seattle roastery.
Nov 3 The company sells control of its China
operations to private equity firm Boyu
Capital in a deal valued at $4 billion.
(Reporting by Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru and Waylon Cunningham in New York; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Tasim Zahid)
