Starbucks’ CEO Brian Niccol will have an unusually long commute to work as he becomes the coffee giant’s new chief next month. Mr Niccol who lives in California will travel 1,600 kilometres every day to the company’s headquarters in Seattle.
As per his offer letter, Mr Niccol will use a corporate jet for his commute. Even when he is not traveling for work, he will be expected to work from the Seattle office at least three days a week, as per Starbucks’ hybrid work policy which has been in place since 2023.
The 50-year-old will be paid a base salary of $1.6 million every year and can earn a cash bonus of $3.6 million to $7.2 million depending on his performance.
He will also be eligible for annual equity awards worth up to $23 million.
This is not the first time Mr Niccol has been part of such a supercommute arrangement. He successfully negotiated a similar deal when he was the CEO of Chipotle in 2018.
Chipotle was headquartered in Colorado, a 15-minute drive from Mr Niccol’s last working place. But the Mexican fast food chain moved its headquarters from Denver to California three months after he was appointed CEO.
“Brian’s primary office and a majority of his time will be spent in our Seattle Support Center or out visiting partners and customers in our stores, roasteries, roasting facilities and offices around the world. His schedule will exceed the hybrid work guidelines and workplace expectations we have for all partners,” a company spokesperson told CNBC.
Such comfortable terms for employment are common for high-ranking executives who have immense bargaining power compared to the average employee.
Hillary Super of singer Rihanna’s lingerie brand Fenty x Savage was given a s similar concession when Victoria’s Secret made her its new CEO.
She will work from the firm’s New York City offices instead of its headquarters near Columbus, Ohio.
But this is not the case for all CEOs.
Amazon’s Andy Jassy and JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon are pitching hard to bring back work-from-office policies.
The reason behind Mr Niccol’s unusual arrangement at Starbucks is underscored by the coffee giant’s falling sales.
In US and China, Starbucks’ two largest markets, sales have dropped this year under its current CEO Laxman Narasimhan’s tenure.
Mr Niccol is a star candidate for the top post as he has a strong track record of turning around troubled companies. When he was CEO of Chipotle, its stock reportedly soared 773%.
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