The Mystery Woman Behind Chipotle's Comeback is Now at Starbucks - Saving Grace or Wishful Thinking?

I can’t believe I’m about to dive into the world of Starbucks corporate strategy, but here we are. And trust me, this ain’t about latte art or which PSL variation is dominating TikTok. Nope — Starbucks is making some big-time moves, and they're calling in the heavy hitters.

(Source: Giphy) 

Enter Tressie Lieberman, the marketing guru you didn’t know you needed but are about to see everywhere. She just landed the gig as Starbucks’ first-ever global chief brand officer. Now if that title doesn’t sound fancy enough, consider this: she’s been Brian Niccol’s right-hand woman at Chipotle, helping him turn burrito bowls into a lifestyle. Now, she’s got her work cut out for her trying to caffeinate Starbucks’ brand while it’s in a bit of a sales-induced death bed.

(Source: QRS) 

So what’s the plan? Well, in short, Niccol, who took over as CEO just last month, clearly isn’t here to sip on lattes and wait for things to improve. He’s rolling out a four-part strategy to put some foam back on top of Starbucks’ game. The first step? Rebranding the whole chain as your “friendly neighborhood coffeehouse.” Because, let’s be honest, when’s the last time you heard anyone talk about Starbucks as a cozy “escape reality” halfway house and not just a place for boss women ordering extra shots of espresso so they can put up with their dipstick male colleagues? Spoiler: It’s been awhile. 

(Source: Giphy) 

Which is why Niccol is betting on our girl Tressi Lieberman to make this thing happen. His statement basically screamed: “We need to tell our story again, and Tressi is the person to do it”  And why wouldn’t she? This is the same woman who turned Chipotle from E. coli headlines to cult status, and before that, she worked her magic on Taco Bell — yes, the same place that convinced you a Doritos taco at 2 AM was a good idea (which it was, I might add). 

(Source: Marketing Dive) 

Now with that said, Tressie’s not running this show solo. Starbucks just handed its U.S. creative duties over to WPP, who’s pulling together a dream team from its agencies like Ogilvy and VML. Translation: expect some new campaigns coming your way soon, and maybe they’ll finally make you care about that Nitro Cold Brew that’s been collecting dust on the menu. 

Back to reality though, you have to hand it to Niccol for actually doing something about Starbucks recent slump. For instance, in Q3 2024, their U.S. comparable sales dropped by 2%, and foot traffic fell off a cliff — down 6%. In China? Well it’s the same story. Same-store sales tanked by 14% last quarter, and competition from local chains offering cheaper alternatives is only making things worse. The Chinese economy’s sluggishness isn’t doing them any favors either. So yeah, it’s not all pumpkin spice and cold foam over there. 

(Source: Daily Mail) 

Meaning, it’s 100% clear as to why Starbucks is banking on Lieberman’s marketing wizardry and whatever WPP can whip up to turn those numbers around. Because, as we all know, investors have been sipping on some seriously bitter quarterly reports lately. 

But, but, but… even though Lieberman may or may not be walking into a dumpster fire with a to-do list longer than your local Starbucks drive-thru line at 8 AM - she’ll be overseeing things she actually had success in at Chipotle. Think: marketing, product development, creative, and data analytics — you know, just the small stuff. Which is why, again, Starbucks is basically betting the farm on her ability to reintroduce the brand to the world. 

(Source: Giphy) 

In the end, we’ll probably get more details when Starbucks drops its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings on October 30. Until then, we’re all just waiting to see if the Niccol-Lieberman tag-team can brew up something strong enough to make Starbucks less about blue-hair angry baristas with waiting times of 20 minutes - and more, WeWork vibes… but with coffee. 

In the meantime, though expect some heavy volatility in Starbucks’ stock price in the short-term… but in the long-term, let’s all hope that Niccol’s plan works. You know, especially if you have skin in the game with this thing. 

As always, stay safe and stay frosty, friends! Until next time…

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Stocks.News holds positions in Starbucks as mentioned in the article.