Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Starbucks new CEO moves faster
Starbucks President and CEO Kevin Johnson wants his company to move faster.
In China, Starbucks is opening a store every 15 hours as it tries to stay ahead of cheaper competitors.
At home, Johnson is creating smaller teams to speed product development. Starbucks’ new Cloud Macchiato was developed, tested and approved in four weeks last spring. That process used to take months.
Those moves may help Starbucks improve store traffic, which was down worldwide in the most recent fiscal year. But other pitfalls remain. For example, Starbucks could face significant backlash if its former Chairman and CEO Howard Schultz decides to run for president.
Johnson, a former technology executive, joined Starbucks’ board in 2009 and became CEO in 2017. He recently discussed the Seattle company with The Associated Press.
New drinks bring customers in, but how do you balance that with satisfying customers who want familiar drinks?
We serve over 100 million customers a week in 30,000 stores around the world. Many times customers come in because they have their favorite beverage, and so we’ve oriented our beverages around our core platforms, whether it’s brewed coffee or espresso, Teavana or our Refreshers. And then we’ll take a core beverage platform like macchiato and we’ll do a little twist or something a little special.
Howard Schultz’s announcement puts Starbucks in a tough spot. How can you support the company’s longtime leader but also distance yourself?
He’s no longer the CEO or the executive chairman. He’s independent in his own views and what he’s doing. Our focus is staying on the business of Starbucks. We don’t get involved in national political elections.
One of your most visible actions as CEO was your decision to close all U.S. stores for a day last spring for racial bias training after two black men were arrested at a Starbucks in Philadelphia. Has that action led to lasting change?
Closing all of our stores and putting together all of the anti-bias training was the beginning of a journey. Since then we’ve added to that with what we call pour-over sessions and other training that we do every month across the company. I would say that this will always be a journey for us. The actions that we took and the actions we continue to take are making us a better company.
How has your background in technology informed your work at Starbucks?
I spent years understanding how technology is reshaping the consumer. Starbucks has over 16 million active Rewards members and a total of 30 million digitally connected customers. We’re bringing in technology in a way that complements the human connection and the in-store experience. And that is that is a big part of what we believe is essential for every retailer.