QUICK EXIT FOR SECOND CUP CEO
Alix Box, a former Holt Renfrew and Starbucks executive tapped to spur a turnaround at coffee retailer Second Cup, has abruptly left her role as chief executive. The news Wednesday came just two days before the chain’s annual meeting of shareholders and three years after Box joined the struggling coffee seller, founded in 1975. Her departure is effective immediately. Box was credited with freshening up Second Cup’s store design and reviving its menu. After she joined the company in February 2014, the coffee retailer outlined a plan to drive up efficiencies in the business and raise new capital as it cut head office employees and renegotiated agreements with its franchisees. But Second Cup, with 290 locations in Canada, is still facing increasing competition from rivals such as Starbucks and restaurant operators such as McDonald’s.