Starbucks Says 'Back to Starbucks' Plan Restores Brand Soul
Starbucks' 'Back to Starbucks' plan lifted global comparable sales 7.9% last quarter. CBO Tressie Lieberman says the brand had 'lost a bit of soul' when she joined in 2024.
Updated
The brief
- Global comparable sales rose 7.9% last quarter under the two-year-old 'Back to Starbucks' plan.
- Chief brand officer Tressie Lieberman joined Starbucks in 2024 and said the brand had 'lost a bit of soul.'
- Lieberman discussed the turnaround with Adweek's Jenny Rooney at Brandweek in Atlanta.
Starbucks says its "Back to Starbucks" transformation plan is gaining momentum two years in, with global comparable sales up 7.9% last quarter.
Alongside more inviting coffeehouses and more consistent service, marketing has played a key part in delivering that growth, according to the company.
At Brandweek in Atlanta, Starbucks chief brand officer Tressie Lieberman sat down with Adweek chief brand officer and community officer Jenny Rooney to discuss how the Seattle-founded brand has been reclaiming the spirit that made it iconic in the first place.
When she joined in 2024, Lieberman said the brand felt like it had "lost a bit of soul."
"So it was very simple," she said, according to the partial transcript published by Adweek.
The rest of the conversation, which outlines three ways Starbucks is reclaiming its brand magic, sits behind Adweek's paywall.
Based on Adweek
Filed under starbucks, branding, back-to-starbucks, brandweek, marketing-strategy
Tom Whitfield
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Staff writer covering consumer brands and retail at Marketing Herald.