Starbucks Replaces Its CEO, Names Chipotle Chief To Head The Company
Credit: MGN
SEATTLE, Wash. (AP) – Starbucks, struggling with weak demand and disgruntled investors, said Tuesday that CEO Laxman Narasimhan is stepping down after a little more than a year in the job.
The Seattle coffee giant said Brian Niccol, the chairman and CEO of Chipotle, will become Starbucks’ chairman and CEO on Sept. 9.
Starbucks shares jumped more than 13% before the market opened.
Narasimhan, a longtime PepsiCo executive, became Starbucks’ CEO in March 2023.
He succeeded Howard Schultz, the longtime Starbucks leader and chairman emeritus who came out of retirement in 2022 to serve as the company’s interim CEO.
Niccol has been CEO of Chipotle since 2018.