As per convenience treatment to replace Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan with Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol

Starbucks has announced a sudden change in leadership, replacing CEO Laxman Narasimhan with Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol. Narasimhan, who took over as CEO in September 2022

Starbucks has announced a sudden change in leadership, replacing CEO Laxman Narasimhan with Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol. Narasimhan, who took over as CEO in September 2022, is immediately stepping down from his role as a member of the brand’s board. Niccol will start his new role on September 9, and in the interim, Starbucks CFO Rachel Ruggeri will serve as CEO. The coffee chain’s board believes Niccol will be a transformative leader for the company, its people, and customers worldwide. Niccol expressed his excitement about joining and his gratitude for the opportunity to help steward the company alongside hundreds of thousands of devoted partners. The leadership shakeup occurred since ELI and SV amassed stakes in the company.

Narasimhan had acquired the position of a longtime Starbucks leader, Howard Schultz. Before joining, Narasimhan served as CEO of Reckitt, a UK-based consumer health and nutrition company, and was a longtime executive at Pepsico. Chipotle has appointed chief operating officer Scott Boatwright as interim CEO, and Starbucks board chair Mellody Hobson will become lead independent director. The sudden change in leadership has caused a stir in the market, with the shares jumping 12% in premarket trading and Chipotle shares falling 10%. It came after Starbucks cut guidance for a third quarter and posted its first sales decline in late 2020. The company was in talks to add Jesse Cohn, a managing partner at Elliott Investment Management, to its board of directors. It was considering setting up committees to review capital allocation and operational improvements.