Starbucks has tapped Laxman Narasimhan as its next CEO.
Narasimhan will become incoming CEO at Starbucks on October 1. He will officially begin his role in April and will then join the company's board of directors, as well. The Reckitt Benckiser Group, where Narasimhan most recently served as CEO, announced earlier on Thursday that he would be stepping down.Howard Schultz, who took over Starbucks from outgoing CEO Kevin Johnson in an interim capacity last spring, will stay on as interim CEO throughout the transition.
" Schultz's plan for change includes"radically improving" the experience of employees and redesigning stores, he wrote at the time. The company has since made changes like closing some stores, citing safety concerns. Narasimhan said in a statement Thursday that he is"humbled" to join Starbucks"as the reinvention and investments in the partner and customer experiences position us to meet the changing demands we face today.