Starbucks will lay off 5% of its workforce

The company announced Tuesday the dismissal of 350 employees. This number does not include employees who work in his cafes. In a memo sent to employees on Tuesday, CEO Kevin Johnson said marketing, creation, products, technology, and store development are all areas of concern. Employees were notified of job cuts on Tuesday.

Johnson said the change was aimed at reducing the number of priorities and changing the way teams work. "The impacts on the jobs announced today are the most important of this transformation," the company said.

The details of the restructuring follow a memo sent to employees by Johnson in September to warn them that structural changes were coming. Among the changes that Starbucks has already begun to make include the consolidation of its analytics teams so that employees in different areas of the business can react more quickly to changing consumer trends and fine-tune their digital marketing strategy.

The company is focused on determining customer preferences in order to better target them with attractive offers for their ordering behavior. Starbucks recently opened its mobile order application to everyone – not just customers in its rewards program – which brought in 4 million new customers digitally registered in the last quarter.

In the afternoon, when the traffic in its cafes is less intense than in the morning, Starbucks reduces the time spent by employees on administrative tasks so that they can focus on customer service. Starbucks is also trying to satisfy consumers who want to drink their coffee on the go. The company plans to open more stores with through windows and tests delivery in Miami.

The company's challenges recently attracted activist investor William Ackman, who announced the 1.1% equity stake in Starbucks last month. Until now, Mr. Ackman said that he was in agreement with the changes brought by Starbucks, including the slowdown in US store growth and China's development.

The company's shares rose sharply earlier this month after reporting that domestic sales growth exceeded expectations due to an increase in the average ticket price. But having more customers at its doors remains its main challenge, the company said.

Write to Julie Jargon at [email protected]