Starbucks announced on May 15, 2026, that it will lay off 300 corporate employees in regional support offices across the US, including Atlanta, Burbank, Chicago, and Dallas, and close some of those offices as part of its ongoing restructuring efforts [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]. The layoffs affect only corporate support roles; Starbucks coffeehouse employees are not impacted by these cuts [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9].
The company plans to incur about $400 million in restructuring charges related to the layoffs and office closures. This includes $120 million in cash severance costs and $280 million in non-cash asset impairments, mostly linked to office real estate [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9]. As of September 28, 2025, Starbucks employed approximately 19,000 non-retail workers in the US and 5,000 international support employees [2, 4, 6, 9].
Since Brian Niccol became CEO in September 2024, Starbucks has executed multiple rounds of job cuts. The latest 300 layoffs add to earlier reductions of 1,100 US corporate jobs announced in February 2025 and 900 more non-retail cuts reported in September 2025, totaling over 2,000 job cuts since Niccol took charge [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9]. Niccol said, “This quarter marked a milestone for Starbucks – and the turn in our turnaround,” highlighting the progress made under his leadership [2].
Starbucks described the layoff and office closures as part of its “Back to Starbucks” strategy, which aims to reduce complexity, lower costs, and return to durable, profitable growth. A company spokesperson said, "We are taking further action under the Back to Starbucks strategy, building on our strong business momentum and working to return the company to durable, profitable growth.” Another added, "Leaders have taken a hard look at their respective functions to further sharpen focus, prioritize work, reduce complexity, and lower costs." [2, 8]
The company reported a 7.1% increase in same-store sales in the US in its latest fiscal quarter, driven by investments in cafe operations, barista staff, new menu items, and restored seating [1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 9]. Starbucks also announced last month plans to open a $100 million support office in Nashville, Tennessee, expected to grow to 2,000 employees over five years [1, 3].
Starbucks is reviewing its international support operations and expects additional job cuts outside the US as part of this broader restructuring effort [1, 2, 3, 8]. It also plans to open its first corporate technology office in India in fiscal 2027 to insource tech jobs and reduce reliance on third-party providers. Starbucks CTO Anand Varadarajan called establishing a multi-site corporate structure “a meaningful step towards that goal.” [10]
The next major event on Starbucks’ timeline includes the opening of the India tech office starting in fiscal year 2027, beginning October 2026 [10].
