Two years after taking the job, Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol sent employees a memo declaring the turnaround done: "Starbucks is back."
Where the story two years ago was long app wait times, understaffed stores and prices customers balked at, Niccol's version now is a company that has touched more than a thousand stores with a physical and staffing overhaul, and just sold off the majority of its struggling China business to a partner betting the country can more than double in size.
"I would categorize it as the shine is back on Starbucks and the experience is back in our coffee houses, both for our customers and our partners are really owning the experience that they are providing to our customers every day."
Niccol was chairman and chief executive of Chipotle before Starbucks named him CEO in 2024, credited there with a turnaround of his own; he spoke the same morning his stock stood about 10% above where it traded the day he started.
I listened to the full interview so you can skip it.
Here are the 5 takeaways that matter.
👤 Guest: Brian Niccol, chairman and chief executive of Starbucks, previously chairman and CEO of Chipotle
🎙️ Hosts: Carl Quintanilla of CNBC's Squawk on the Street and Andrew Ross Sorkin of Squawk Box, joining together for the interview
📰 Published: 10 September 2026
🔴 Watch on CNBC | ⏱️ 10 min
Key Takeaways
The two-year turnaround is officially over, in Niccol's own telling
Announced the same morning in a memo to employees: "Starbucks is back"
Over 1,000 US stores have been physically and operationally overhauled, with 500 more due by fiscal year-end
Thousands more are planned for the following fiscal year
Protein is the new platform, led by a pumpkin protein cold foam Niccol personally recommends
Digital menu boards now let stores change their offer by time of day, something the old fixed boards couldn't do
Starbucks sold 60% of its China business to a partner, Boyu, betting the market can grow from about 8,000 stores toward 15,000 to 20,000
No labor deal has been reached with unionized stores, and Niccol would not say whether one is required to keep running the business
Starbucks has deliberately pulled back from political and policy commentary to focus on being, in his words, "America's local coffee house"
1. The Shine Is Back
Quintanilla opened by noting the stock is up about 10% since Niccol started two years ago, and 30% since the hire was announced, and asked where the turnaround stands.
Niccol declared the effort complete, in the same words he used in a memo sent to Starbucks employees that morning. "I would categorize it as the shine is back on Starbucks and the experience is back in our coffee houses, both for our customers and our partners are really owning the experience that they are providing to our customers every day"
His framing of the original goal was returning to a basic promise: a great coffee house, with partners who own the experience with their customers, rather than any single new initiative
He credited Starbucks' baristas, calling them "partners," for embracing what the company calls its Back to Starbucks program and said that adoption is what let the turnaround take hold
2. Over 1,000 Stores Rebuilt
Andrew Ross Sorkin pressed on what remains, listing the old complaints — long app waits, labor issues, high prices — and asking what is left on Niccol's list.
The uplift program, touching both the physical stores and how they're staffed, is about nine months old. "We've touched well over a thousand." Niccol said the company expects to reach roughly 1,500 stores by the end of its current fiscal year, with thousands more the year after
The other standard he pointed to is "green apron service," the company's term for consistent execution — right staffing levels, correctly deployed partners, and support so that, in his words, every interaction is "not a transaction, but a moment"
He called the physical overhaul "a critical piece" of the turnaround, saying it restores "the warmth, kind of the whole Starbucks vibe"
3. Protein and the PM Menu
Sorkin, describing himself as trying to be a "protein maxer," asked how the product lineup and store operations have changed.
Digital menu boards, now installed across nearly all US stores, let Starbucks change its offer by time of day — something the old physical boards made difficult. Mornings lean toward breakfast sandwiches and hot drinks; the company is now pushing its refreshers platform, including an energy line, into the afternoon
Protein is the platform Niccol is pushing hardest, starting with a protein cold foam added to iced and cold-brew drinks. "Now, if you haven't tried the pumpkin protein cold foam, I would highly recommend it"
The pumpkin spice latte's marketing tie-in with Martha Stewart was, in Niccol's telling, part of the same push to stay current — cutting products that no longer resonated with customers while bringing in what he called relevant flavors and textures
4. Selling Most of China
Sorkin noted Starbucks had pulled back from a market Howard Schultz spent decades building, and asked how Niccol thinks about that now.
Starbucks sold 60% of its China business to a partner. "So, you know, we did sell 60% of the China business to a great partner, Boyu"
Niccol said the partnership is still new. "But the good news is we have a shared vision that we think we can grow that China business in a material way"
The growth case rests on scale that doesn't exist yet. "today we have over 8000 coffee houses" in China, and Niccol said Boyu talks about a horizon of 15,000 to 20,000 — more than double the current footprint
He framed China's opportunity as cultural rather than purely commercial, describing it as becoming "a coffee and tea community" and a place people want to spend time, not just buy a drink
5. No Deal, No Politics
Quintanilla and Sorkin closed on two fronts where Starbucks has changed how it operates: labor, and the company's public voice.
A union effort that made headlines two years ago still has no contract. Niccol said the company will keep coming to the bargaining table. "And at the same time, we are going to stay focused on making sure that we have absolutely the best job for our partners, both the job they're in today, as well as the career path that they can have in the future"
Asked directly whether Starbucks can keep operating without a deal, he did not answer yes or no, saying only that the company won't let the negotiation get in the way of running stores
Starbucks has stepped back from entering political and policy debates, a shift from a company that once did so more often. Niccol said Starbucks has chosen to stay focused on being a hyper-local brand: "we are America's local coffee house" — or Japan's, or China's, depending on the market
He put the current US store count at close to 20,000
Bonus Insights
Niccol described the small touches behind the "moment, not a transaction" line. "Maybe there's a little fun note written on your cup"
He tied the community framing back to something more personal. "And you see finally, like a little touch of humanity happening in our coffee houses"
Niccol's bottom line is that the physical and operational turnaround is largely finished and repeatable at scale, while the harder questions — a labor contract, and how far China's new ownership structure can grow the market — remain open.
Products, Companies & Tools Mentioned
Starbucks (The company Niccol has run for two years, mid this turnaround)
Chipotle Mexican Grill (Where Niccol was chairman and chief executive before Starbucks hired him in 2024)
Boyu Capital (The partner Starbucks sold 60% of its China business to)
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