new York Howard Schultz just can’t get away from Starbucks. The longtime head of the coffee chain has already given up his position as CEO twice. In 2018 he also resigned as Chairman of the Supervisory Board. Now, at the age of 68, he will take the lead again: Because his successor Kevin Johnson is surprisingly stepping down, Schulz will replace him, at least temporarily.
The announcement came shortly before the annual general meeting on Wednesday. The stock market celebrated the founder’s return with an increase in the Starbucks share price of around six percent.
Johnson ran the Seattle coffee chain for five years. “A year ago I signaled to the Board that I would consider resigning as the pandemic nears its end. I have the feeling it’s a natural conclusion to my 13 years with the company,” the 61-year-old explained his decision.
In fact, the manager who took office in 2017 had not had an easy time for the company. A year after taking office, Johnson faced allegations of racism. In 2018, two black men were taken away by police because they were waiting for a friend at a Starbucks in Philadelphia and had not yet consumed anything.
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A video of the incident caused a worldwide sensation and damaged the reputation of the company, which otherwise likes to present itself as progressive and cosmopolitan. The former Microsoft manager Johnson therefore had the entire workforce in the USA trained on the subject of racism after the incident and also partially closed the shops.
Less than two years later, the corona pandemic hit the coffee chain: inner cities were deserted and nobody needed coffee to go anymore. Branches closed in droves around the world.
Howard Schultz only gets a $1 base salary
In his time, Johnson Starbucks digitized more. Not only the shops are better networked. Customers can also pre-order online in many places today and thus pick up their drink more quickly as soon as they step into the store. Johnson relaunched the loyalty program for regular customers and expanded massively in China, which is now Starbucks’ second largest market.
During his time at the helm, the share price has gained about 50 percent in an overall strong market. Last year, Starbucks sales grew by almost a third to $29.1 billion.
Chairman of the board Mellody Hobson told the business broadcaster CNBC that the company wants to find a permanent successor by the fall. “And I can tell you, we’re not going to recruit through Zoom,” Hobson said. There is already a group of strong candidates who are interested in the job.
The longtime CEO of Starbucks is temporarily taking over the management of the group again.
(Photo: AP)
Schultz shared that he actually had no intentions of returning to the company. He was the CEO from 1986 to 2000, and then again from 2008 to 2017. Before the 2020 election, he was even considered a possible Democratic presidential nominee.
“If you love something, then you have a deep sense of responsibility to help when you’re called,” Schulz said on Wednesday. This is reflected in his remuneration: for short-term assignments as CEO, he receives a basic salary of one dollar in addition to additional company benefits.
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