Starbucks Cuts 300 Corporate Jobs in Third Round of Layoffs Under CEO Niccol
CNBC reported Friday that Starbucks is eliminating 300 U.S. corporate positions and closing several regional support offices. The coffee giant framed the Starbucks layoffs as a key pillar of its broader effort to restore sustained, profitable growth.
Third Cuts in Fourteen Months
Friday’s announcement is the third distinct round of workforce reductions since CEO Brian Niccol assumed leadership of the chain. The cuts apply only to corporate staff and will not affect baristas or other coffeehouse employees. Starbucks said it has also begun a review of its international corporate headcount, signaling that further reductions outside the U.S. are possible.
The company expects to absorb total restructuring charges of $400 million. Roughly $280 million of that figure represents noncash impairment charges tied to long-lived assets, while the remaining $120 million covers cash severance and related costs from the job eliminations.
A Turnaround With Real Momentum
The latest cuts arrive against a backdrop of genuine operational improvement. For its most recent fiscal quarter, Starbucks reported that U.S. comparable-store sales rose 7.1%, driven in part by a 4.3% lift in transaction volume. That marked the second consecutive quarter of traffic growth for American cafes, a metric the company had struggled to improve before Niccol’s arrival.
Niccol has overhauled cafe operations, refreshed the menu, restored in-store seating that had been removed in prior years, and added more staff at individual locations. The strategy, branded internally as “Back to Starbucks,” aims to recapture customers who drifted toward rivals during a period of elevated prices and inconsistent service.
Background: A Chain Under Pressure
Starbucks entered its turnaround period facing a difficult combination of rising competition and increasingly price-sensitive consumers. In early 2025, Niccol announced the elimination of roughly 1,100 positions alongside hundreds of unfilled roles. Seven months later, a $1 billion restructuring plan brought a further 900 nonretail job losses. As of late September 2025, the company employed approximately 9,000 nonretail workers in the U.S. and around 5,000 international staff in regional support roles.
What Comes Next for Starbucks
The spokesperson statement cited by CNBC pointed to a deliberate effort to “sharpen focus, prioritize work, reduce complexity, and lower costs” across all business functions. With same-store sales finally moving in the right direction, management appears willing to absorb near-term restructuring charges in exchange for a leaner and faster-moving organization.
Investors and analysts will now watch whether the international workforce review produces a comparable fourth wave of cuts.
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