Starbucks ousted its prior CEO last year after a string of sales declines. Niccol was recruited from Chipotle Mexican Grill to turn the business around. The coffee chain didn’t require Niccol to move to the Seattle, where Starbucks is based, and agreed to cover temporary housing costs in the area as well as use of the company jet.
Starbucks granted new CEO Brian Niccol about US$96 million ($129.22 million) after four months of work last year, one of the biggest compensation packages in corporate America.
About 94% of Niccol’s pay came from stock awards, according to a filing. Most of them are tied to performance and the rest are time-based, vesting over a three-year period. Niccol, who joined Starbucks in early September 2024, also got a US$5 million sign-on bonus after his one-month anniversary with the company.
