Schultz hints at big changes for Starbucks ‘next chapter’

The next-gen of Starbucks Corp. is about to emerge.

In a letter to employees on the coffee giant’s corporate site, CEO Howard Schultz alluded to the company’s next chapter. In April, Schultz took the retook the reins of Starbucks on an interim basis.

"Today, we find ourselves in a position where we must modernize and transform the Starbucks experience in our stores and recreate an environment that is relevant, welcoming and safe, and where we uplift one another with dignity, respect and kindness,” Schultz wrote. “We need to reinvent Starbucks for the future.”

Specific programs and initiatives regarding the company’s “next chapter” will be revealed in the weeks ahead. But they will be focused on areas that include the store and customer experiences, environmental sustainability and programs for employees.

Schultz said Starbucks’ reinvention will be guided by four principles:

• Safety, welcoming and kindness for its stores;

• Advancement and opportunity for its employees;

• Well-being for one another and its communities; and

• Shared power, shared accountability, shared success. 

“We built this company on the power of partner ideas and voice,” Schultz wrote. “Reinvention must even more deeply unleash power within each of us, more deeply share accountability in building a shared future and benefit all of us when the company succeeds. We aim to be a wholly new kind of company in our industry, setting a new standard.”

In May, Starbucks said it was investing $1 billion in new wage hikes, employee training and store innovation.

[Read More: Starbucks investing $1 billion in new wage hikes, training, store innovation]