On Tuesday, Starbucks’s new CEO, Brian Niccol, sent a letter to shareholders describing his 100-day plan. He also acknowledged Starbucks’s shortcomings. “In some places — especially in the U.S. — we aren’t always delivering,” wrote Niccol, who started as Starbucks’s CEO on Monday. “It can feel transactional, menus can feel overwhelming, product is inconsistent, the wait too long or the handoff too hectic. These moments are opportunities for us to do better.”
Part of that plan, Niccol said, means “[evolving Starbucks’s] app and mobile ordering platform” — a part of the business that has proven challenging for the Seattle-based coffee chain.
While Starbucks used to be one of the leaders in mobile app ordering, the company is struggling to maintain momentum. In April, Starbucks’s then-CEO Laxman Narasimhan told investors that a large number of potential customers — in the “mid-teens percent” — used the Starbucks app to start an order but then didn’t check out. In June, Starbucks founder Howard Schultz went on the podcast “Acquired” and called the mobile pick-up area “a mosh pit.”
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