With a targeted investment of $150,000 per store, Starbucks is planning a new coffeehouse “uplift” program designed to quickly replace thousands of seats that had been previously removed from stores while introducing greater texture, warmth and layer design. It’s part of the retailer’s efforts to make its physical locations more welcoming while still maintaining service speed and other customer experience KPIs.
“Every coffeehouse we operate should be warm and welcoming and provide a place for customers to connect and gather,” said Starbucks Chairman and CEO Brian Niccol during a recent conference call discussing the retailer’s Q3 financial results. “They should have a great seat for any occasion, and they should provide customers access to a high-quality Mobile Order and Pay experience and a drive-thru where possible.”
Starbucks has slowed new builds and major renovations to prioritize the uplift program, which will feature “minimal to no downtime,” Niccol said, adding that “work [on the uplifts] is accelerating now in New York City. We’ll begin in Southern California later in Q4, and by the end of calendar year 2026, we will have completed at least 1,000 uplifts across North America.
“We’ve also begun work on the ‘coffeehouse of the future,’” Niccol added. “We have a new standalone prototype that will open in fiscal 2026 that has 32 seats, a drive-thru and a roughly 30% lower cost to build. A small-format version with approximately 10 seats is under construction in New York City and will open in the next few months.”
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Pickup-Only Locations Nixed
As part of this directional change, Starbucks will phase out its mobile order and pickup-only concept during FY 2026, which begins in October 2025. The retailer operates approximately 80 to 90 such locations, according to the Wall Street Journal, some of which are in office buildings and all designed to get customers in and out quickly.
“We found this format to be overly transactional and lacking the warmth and human connection that defines our brand,” said Niccol. “We have a strong digital offering and believe we can deliver the same level of convenience through our community coffeehouses with a superior Mobile Order and Pay experience.”
Niccol and his team are working to reverse a long slump at the world’s largest coffee retailer. The results for Q3 2025 (which ended June 29, 2025) showed same-store sales declines for the sixth quarter in a row. Global comp sales declined 2%, driven by a 2% decline in comparable transactions that was partially offset by a 1% increase in average ticket sizes. U.S. locations also saw a 2% comp sales decline, driven by a 4% drop in comparable transactions and partially offset by a 2% average ticket size increase.
In November 2024 Starbucks laid out plans to reclaim its role as the “Community Coffee House,” including bringing back self-serve condiment bars and not charging for non-milk additions to coffee. In June 2025 Starbucks piloted Green Dot Assist, a gen AI-powered barista assistant, in 35 stores.
Niccol, who has been focused on the customer experience at U.S. Starbucks cafés since he began the job of Chairman and CEO in August 2024, noted that the retailer’s efforts will take time to brew properly: “We’ve fixed a lot and done the hard work on the hard things to build a strong operating foundation, and based on my experience of turnarounds, we are ahead of schedule,” he said in a statement. “In 2026, we’ll unleash a wave of innovation that fuels growth, elevates customer service and ensures everyone experiences the very best of Starbucks. We’re building back a better Starbucks experience and a better business.”
