- Starbucks cafés may soon have more power outlets.
- Brian Niccol, Starbucks’ CEO, said the company was testing a store redesign with more seats and power outlets.
- This is the latest move in his “Back to Starbucks” plan to make the chain more warm and inviting.
You won’t have to worry about your laptop running out of juice at Starbucks anymore if Brian Niccol, the company’s CEO, has anything to say about it.
Niccol’s latest move to get coffee drinkers to linger at the chain’s cafes involves introducing more power outlets in stores.
The chain is testing a café redesign in the US, with the aim of making it a more comfortable and inviting place to hang out, the CEO said in a shareholder meeting on Wednesday.
“Imagine coffee houses that are comfortable and warm with expanded seating options, power outlets, and abundant food displays,” Niccol told shareholders.
Niccol said the new design would also have clearly separated sections for those dining in-store and those picking up their to-go orders.
A Starbucks representative told BI earlier in March that it would add more seating to its cafés and start introducing shelves and risers to separate the café and mobile ordering sections.
This is the latest move in Niccol’s “Back to Starbucks” plan, a game plan he developed when he joined Starbucks in September to turn the company around. Wednesday’s shareholder meeting marked six months since he took the top job.
The executive has been working to solve challenges including long wait times, flaws in the customer experience, and issues with its mobile ordering system. Niccol said that mobile ordering “chipped away” at the brand’s soul.
Starbucks’ global comparable sales slid by 7% in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to the same period a year before. Its performance improved in the first quarter of 2025, when global comparable sales decreased by 4% year-on-year.
A key pillar of Niccol’s “Back to Starbucks” is rebranding the company as a cozy local coffeehouse where people can hang out.
His changes include introducing ceramic mugs for hot drinks in store, handwritten messages for customers, and self-serve condiment bars.
