SEATTLE _ Starbucks Chairman and CEO Howard Schultz is stepping back from some of the more day-to-day operations of the coffee chain to focus on overall long-term global strategy and innovation.
Starting Sept. 1, his priorities will be on Starbucks' higher-end businesses, including the Roasteries, the high-end coffee shops Starbucks first opened in 2014; the Reserve Stores, which sell and brew Starbuck's more premium, small-lot Reserve coffees; and Princi, the high-end bakery chain Starbucks just invested in. Schultz is also aiming to build a premium business unit within Starbucks, he said in a letter to employees Monday.
He'll primarily focus on innovation across store design, customer experience and social impact, the company said.
Taking over for Schultz in leading the senior management team will be Kevin Johnson, Starbucks' president and chief operating officer.
Among the other organizational changes announced Monday:
_Cliff Burrows, currently group president responsible for all Starbucks operations in the Americas, will lead a new group called Siren Retail, responsible for expanding the Roasteries and Reserve stores, the Princi organization and the Teavana business.
Burrows will focus on growing and operating the businesses while Schultz will focus on the design and experience behind them.
_John Culver, currently group president of Starbucks' China Asia Pacific operations, among other duties, will head Starbucks Global Retail, responsible for retail sales around the world.
The organizational changes were made "so we can begin the next phase of our growth and development," Schultz said in the letter.
