Former Taco Bell executives Mike Grams and Meredith Sandland are joining the US coffee chain as Chief Stores Officer and Chief Store Development Officer respectively, with current North America President Sara Trilling set to leave the company after more than 20 years
.jpg.aspx?lang=en-GB)
Starbucks currently operates over 17,000 stores in the US and a further 1,488 outlets in Canada | Photo credit: Sebastián Santacruz
Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol has made further changes to the coffee chain’s North America leadership team with the creation of new Chief Stores Officer and Chief Store Development Officer roles.
The new leadership structure will replace the current North America President role held by Sarah Trilling, who has announced she will step down.
In an update to staff, Niccol said former Taco Bell Chief Operating Officer Mike Grams has joined the company to take on the Chief Stores Officer position and will be responsible for Starbucks’ North America retail teams and store performance. The Seattle-based coffee chain currently operates over 17,000 stores in the US and a further 1,488 outlets in Canada.
Starbucks has also appointed Empower Delivery CEO Meredith Sandland as Chief Store Development Officer, a position focused on store design and implementing Niccol’s vision to ‘deliver the community coffeehouses our customers and partners expect’.
Both Grams and Sandland worked alongside Niccol at US fast-food chain Taco Bell 2011-2018.
Read related content: Starbucks CEO hails positive progress on turnaround strategy
The two appointments see long-serving executive Sara Trilling leave Starbucks after more than 20 years. Niccol said while Trilling acknowledged the need for Starbucks to split her role in two, she had decided that ‘neither new role was right for her’.
Trilling is the fourth high-profile North America executive to leave Starbucks since Niccol became CEO in September 2024, following former Starbucks North America CEO Michael Conway, Chief Sustainability Officer Michael Kobori and Lead Independent Director Mellody Hobson – all of whom have retired.
Arthur Valdez, appointed Executive Vice President, Global Supply and Customer Solutions in October 2023 has also announced he will step down, with Starbucks set to announce a new Chief Supply Chain Officer in the coming weeks.
Founded in 1971, Starbucks currently operates more than 40,500 stores across 88 markets globally.