- Coffee chain Starbucks will provide two branded black shirts to all its workers for free, in hopes of making their iconic green aprons stand out. It’s also going to make the chairs comfier to persuade customers to stay longer. Starbucks’ stock price has declined, however, on fears that it will be negatively affected by tariffs on imported coffee beans.
Starbucks is continuing its push to refresh its brand by introducing a streamlined dress code across its North American stores.
The coffee chain will require baristas to wear solid black tops, it announced Monday, and it will provide two branded black shirts to workers for free. Baristas will also be required to don khaki, black, or blue denim pants. The new dress code will go into effect on May 12.
The more neutral clothing palette will help emphasize the chain’s iconic green apron, a fixture of the company’s brand since 1987, Starbucks said in the announcement.
Since CEO Brian Niccol began his tenure last September, the coffee giant has made several changes to its menu and store culture in order to get “back to Starbucks,” a vow Niccol made in his first letter to the company. Those changes have included handwriting names on customers’ cups, using comfier chairs to encourage patrons to enjoy their lattes in stores rather than taking them out, and cutting back on custom menu items that have jammed online ordering.
Starbucks has endured a challenging year. Its share price has tumbled nearly 9% year to date and more than 14.5% over the past two weeks as Wall Street reacted to President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs. The U.S., in common with most other countries, imports most of its coffee—which might mean higher prices for morning joe.
Early positive signs
Despite broader economic uncertainty complicating Starbucks’ comeback, Niccol’s changes appear to have been swiftly implemented, giving analysts optimism that his reforms will have the intended effects.
Bernstein equity analyst Danilo Gargiulo visited locations of the chain in Los Angeles and San Diego shortly after it reintroduced ceramic mugs and restricted its bathrooms to paying customers only. He told Fortunein January that the changes were swift in the limited stores he visited and that customers appeared more relaxed and willing to stick around longer.
Not everyone is on board with the adjustments. Some baristas are less than enthusiastic about custom doodles and notes on Starbucks cups, claiming it slows down the flow of fulfilling orders. Others said they worried customers mistook their notes as flirting.
Starbucks did not respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
The new, consumer-friendly ethos may yet pay off. Niccol vowed to freeze prices through fiscal 2025, a strategy Gargiulo believes will run counter to that of other coffee brands who need to pass down costs to consumers as a result of tariff-induced coffee bean price hikes.
“Even though we might be seeing a contraction in the near term, from worse than expected demand overall,” Gargiulo told Fortune earlier this month, “they could be emerging stronger.”
