Who is the CEO of Starbucks?

Brian Niccol is chairman and chief executive officer of Starbucks. He joined in September 2024 after leading Chipotle.

Who founded Starbucks?

Starbucks was founded in Seattle in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker; Howard Schultz later acquired and scaled the company.

How many employees does Starbucks have?

Starbucks reported about 381,000 employees in its fiscal 2025 annual report.

Who should you contact to sell into Starbucks?

Target the functional owner for store operations, digital, supply chain, marketing, or finance, and prepare for procurement, security, privacy, and legal review.

Starbucks

Who are Starbucks' decision-makers?

Starbucks is led by Brian Niccol, who became chairman and CEO in September 2024. Major buying decisions involve store operations, technology, finance, procurement, supply chain, marketing, legal, security, and regional leaders.

CEO: Brian Niccol
CFO: Cathy Smith
Founded: 1971
Employees: 381,000
HQ: Seattle, WA
Notable: Back to Starbucks turnaround

Brian NiccolChairman and Chief Executive OfficerCEO since September 2024Former Chipotle CEO leading the Back to Starbucks turnaround.
Cathy SmithExecutive Vice President and Chief Financial OfficerCFO during the 2025-2026 turnaround periodOwns financial planning, investor messaging, capital allocation, and margin recovery.
Brady BrewerChief Executive Officer, Starbucks InternationalInternational CEO listed by StarbucksKey leader for licensed-market strategy and international growth.
Dominic CarrExecutive Vice President, Chief Communications and Corporate Affairs OfficerExecutive leadership role listed by StarbucksImportant stakeholder for communications, policy, reputation, and corporate affairs.

Who leads Starbucks?

Brian Niccol leads Starbucks after running Chipotle through a major growth and operating transformation. Cathy Smith leads finance, Brady Brewer runs Starbucks International, and the executive team includes communications, legal, partner, technology, marketing, and store-development leaders.

Who actually makes buying decisions at Starbucks?

Store operations and technology teams are central for anything touching mobile order, POS, staffing, equipment, loyalty, or throughput. Supply chain owns coffee, food, logistics, and quality systems; marketing and digital own customer engagement; finance, procurement, legal, privacy, and security shape enterprise approval.

How is Starbucks organized as it scales?

Starbucks is organized around North America, International, Channel Development, store operations, technology, supply chain, brand, finance, partner resources, and corporate affairs. The current turnaround increases executive attention on work that simplifies stores and restores customer frequency.

As of June 2026.Sources:Starbucks executive leadership Brian Niccol profile

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