Starbucks holds prices steady for now, CEO says

Despite price pressures from tariffs and an extended sales slump, Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol said he is optimistic the company is on the comeback trail.“I’m genuinely excited about the opportunity for our company,” Niccol told NBC News’ Hallie Jackson in an interview

Despite price pressures from tariffs and an extended sales slump, Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol said he is optimistic the company is on the comeback trail.

“I’m genuinely excited about the opportunity for our company,” Niccol told NBC News’ Hallie Jackson in an interview.

Niccol is known as a turnaround expert, given his experience running Chipotle, which thrived under his watch. He’s looking to replicate that success at Starbucks, the biggest coffee company in the world with 32,000 locations and $36 billion in annual revenue as of the last fiscal year.

Competition from the likes of Dunkin', McDonald's and Dutch Bros. has taken a toll on Starbucks, as has consumers' weariness of stubborn inflation and rising prices. The company’s same-store sales have fallen for five straight quarters, and it announced in April that its profit was cut in half compared to a year earlier.

Since taking over in September, though, Niccol has rolled out changes to Starbucks’ business model — cutting 30% of its menu, requiring that customers buy a menu item to sit in its stores and introducing a new “green apron” service model that uses an algorithm to help baristas sequence orders. Starbucks' stock is on the upswing since the company’s lackluster earnings report in late April. Its growth this year has outpaced gains in the broad S&P 500 stock index.