International coffee giants Starbucks announced former Sam’s Club CEO Rosalind Brewer as its new Chief Operating Officer and Group President, the no.2 position in the company, after President and CEO Kevin Johnson.
Brewer’s appointment makes her not only the first woman but the first African American, to hold that title. Her new role will take effect on October 2nd, where she will oversee Americas (Canada, U.S., and Latin America), as well as the global functions of supply chain, product innovation, and store development organizations.
“Starbucks is a culture-first company focused on performance and Roz is a world class operator and executive who embodies the values of Starbucks. She has been a trusted strategic counselor to me ever since she joined our board of directors, and I deeply value her insight, business acumen, and leadership expertise. Roz is the right leader to help us realize our greatest of ambitions in this next chapter of our journey,” said Kevin Johnson, Starbucks president and ceo in a statement. “I am honored that Roz is joining Starbucks in this capacity and playing an important role with an accomplished team of senior leaders that reflects the strength and diversity of our organization.”
Brewer, who has repeatedly been recognized as one of the world’s most powerful women, ranking #19 by Fortune (2016) and #57 by Forbes (2016) and also sits on the board of directors for Lockheed Martin Corporation and chairs the Board of Trustees at Spelman, had this to say about joining Starbucks:
“As a passionate customer of the brand and recently elected board member, I have a deep love and admiration for the Starbucks brand and its people. I am so honored to have the pleasure of working with the Starbucks leadership team to realize our highest of aspirations for the company and I look forward to working closely with the astute and talented leaders across the enterprise,” said Brewer.
#BlackExcellence prevails once again. Now every Starbucks coffee comes with a little magic in it!
