Starbucks says cutting shop staff in favour of automation has failed

[groundloop]

Source: The Guardian

Starbucks is planning to hire more baristas, get them to work more hours at its coffee shops and roll back its embrace of automation, as the company’s new leadership battles to turn the chain around.

Brian Niccol, who joined Starbucks as chief executive last September, has vowed to “fundamentally change” the company’s strategy in order to win back customers.

In a call with investors on Wednesday, he acknowledged that reducing the number of staff members in outlets had backfired.

“Over the last couple of years, we’ve actually been removing labour from the stores, I think with the hope that equipment could offset the removal of the labour,” Niccol said. “What we’re finding is that wasn’t an accurate assumption with what played out.”

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/apr/30/starbucks-says-cutting-shop-staff-in-favour-of-automation-has-failed

[Raven123]

1. Another duh moment

[Attilatheblond]

2. If people wanted to watch a machine make their coffee, they would stay home and use their coffee makers

Did Starbucks not realize people pay for overpriced burned coffee because they like grumbling about standing in line for the chance to be rude to an actual human employee?

[patphil]

3. I stopped going to Starbucks when they started putting the cream and sugar in the coffee for me.

They never got it right; usually too sweet and too little cream.
If I want that, I can go to Dunkin Donuts.
I tend to go to the small coffee shops that get their beans from a local roaster, or do their own roasting. I'm sure most of us have a couple of these shops locally.
Other than that, I buy whole beans from the same shop, and grind them at home.

[Puppyjive]

4. I want to go to Starbucks

I want a snickers hot, sugar free. Every coffee drive thru can make that. Starbucks cannot. I don't go there because they can't customize anything.

[GenThePerservering]

5. They might turn that chain around

if they made better coffee and less rubbishy syrupy stuff.

The baristas are always nice, though, when I'm forced to go to Starbucks due to their monopoly. Remember to always tip cash in their tip jar - I think corporate tends to siphon off the tips.

[CrispyQ]

6. "..with the hope that equipment could offset the removal of the labour."

How? Self-serve coffee kiosks? What good are more coffee & espresso machines in the back if you don't have service in the front? I don't get it. Once again, it sounds like it was an idea by some overpaid CEO who has never worked in a coffee shop before, much less any retail job.

[ProfessorGAC]

11. Doubtful It Was A CEO

More likely some "promoted to fast, too soon" VP who had this brilliant idea that a "not as smart as he thinks he is" got convinced was a great plan.
Any CEO that couldn't see the holes in the plan wouldn't be clever enough to have come up with the idea.

[Aristus]

16. Executives are always doing something mind-bogglingly stupid (from a business standpoint) in order

to justify their obscene salary and benefit packages.

I call it the New Coke Phenomenon.

[ProfessorGAC]

17. But, They Always Employ....

...plausible deniability.
The CEO of Coke didn't get canned over that fiasco. But, an EVP & other VPs did.
The CEO was the fool who got convinced it was a good idea, but he didn't get directly blamed for the failure.
I was fortunate that I worked a long time for a company that didn't have morons in the executive suites.
It was also a company with a pretty rationale pay structure. The CEO only made 12x what I did.

[NJCher]

13. I used to work for McDonalds

I was an executive, marketing department.

Every few months we had to put in a day or two working in the stores.

It helped us keep in touch with the real world.

I recall how I witnessed the employees running around, trying to get out the orders, and they kept getting knocked in the head by all the dangling point of sale materials the marketing department produced and required that they put up.

Went back to the office and canceled development of point of sale for the rest of the year.

[Delphinus]

22. I love that!

Being in the store, seeing how things run, is important, in my opinion.

[kimbutgar]

7. My husband makes a pot of coffee every morning and leaves enough for me

I can’t remember the last time I stepped into a Starbucks!

[louis-t]

8. This seems to be a theme today, corporate cost-cutting backfires.

Things I've noticed lately:

Taco Bell has automated order-takers at the drive-through. Infuriating because of the 'up-selling'. "Would you like.." I complained numerous times. They're still doing it.

Hungry Howie's outsourced it's order-takers. God knows where. It took 3 minutes to place an order that took the store employees 15 seconds to perform. I complained constantly. They've stopped it at my favorite location.

Kroger had 90% self checkout. Now suddenly they've added more cashiers.

A CEO only has to show a slight increase in profits to earn his $3 million a year. It's all on paper and they never see the other results of their decisions. My Dad used to call it "Saving a nickel per thousand."

[Initech]

9. And neither has keeping all the profits for yourselves!

Hey CEOs, pay your employees fair wages, then we'll talk!

[mike_c]

10. maybe stop torching their coffee beans

I simply don't like their coffee. I've never had a cup of Starbucks coffee that didn't taste burnt. Ugh.

[Skittles]

14. it's horrible

if I ever made a pot for coffee club at work there would be many complaints

[DENVERPOPS]

12. during the Great depression

people couldn't even afford to buy a cup of coffee, much less a grossly overpriced Starbucks type cup of coffee.....

Read Steinbeck's GRAPES OF WRATH, to read about the common person's day to day impossible struggles....

[Beringia]

18. What are you, a proletariat?

[GenThePerservering]

15. Starbucks is already just push-button automation for the coffee

They could install equipment that would automatically add the milk/foam for the regular coffee drinks. Not sure about all the speciality drinks they make.

Starbucks in the boonies is funny. I was riding my bike through a quite small town that had a Starbucks and decided I wanted a cup of coffee. I go in there and it's full of gun nuts (there's a whole open carry thing going on). I figured they'd hassle me for my bike helmet, etc., but they were fine, just congregating getting their drinks.

Big tuff-guys all had carmel machiattos ("extra sprinkles&quot , some German chocolate thing that looked like 90-weight oil, and something else that had lots of whip cream on it.

I ordered three shots of espresso.

They all stared at me like I was nuts. I get my little cup, toasted them and wandered off to drink it. I should have told them it would put hair on their chest lol.

[mahina]

20. That's pretty funny

[mahina]

19. Good

[sakabatou]

21. *pretends to be shocked*