Starbucks’ Unusual Move to Change Its Barista Dress Code Could Help Regain Lost Mojo

Personalization and professionalism

Compared to the other components in Back to Starbucks—Niccol’s master plan to return the brand to “a welcoming coffeehouse where people gather and where we serve the finest coffee, handcrafted by our skilled baristas”—telling employees what to wear might feel a little persnickety. But there are marketing-rooted reasons for it.

The CEO’s strategy is to place the restaurant experience back into the hands of behind-the-bar employees, whose skills helped differentiate the chain in the early days and who, in recent weeks, have already resurrected the tradition of writing messages on customers’ paper cups.

Niccol, who ran Chipotle for six years prior to taking the coffee job, has pegged Starbucks’ fortunes to personalized customer service and fostering an image of professionalism. And the sight of a barista in a faded lumberjack shirt apparently doesn’t radiate professionalism.

“By updating our dress code, we can deliver a more consistent coffeehouse experience,” is how the company explained its reasoning. (Starbucks corporate declined ADWEEK’s invitation to elaborate).

Uniforms are still common in quick-service restaurants, but given Niccol’s last gig, a dress code seems out of left field.

As an industry insider with knowledge of Starbucks explained to ADWEEK, Niccol “came from a decentralized crew uniform experience at Chipotle—basically, just a shirt. Employees wore jeans, shorts, whatever was underneath.”

By contrast, Niccol is being more “directive” at Starbucks, the source said. Essentially, “he’s trying to dress up the dining room.”

Customer service isn’t the only reason why. The dress code will also embody the Starbucks brand in a physical sense. Put plainly, a black shirt and neutral pants makes it easier for the chain’s green apron to pop. (Black shirts will “allow our iconic green apron to shine,” is how the company put it).

Second only to the mermaid logo, Starbucks’ green apron is its most integral piece of branding. In the years immediately following the chain’s 1971 founding, baristas wore simple, brown, grocer’s aprons. But when Howard Schultz bought the six-unit chain for $3.8 million in 1987, a green apron became standard. 

Niccol’s plans call for hiring more baristas and expanding their hours, a reversal of the tactics adopted by his predecessor. Laxman Narasimhan, who stepped down in August of last year after 17 months on the job, reduced employee counts and relied more on automation. This week, Niccol told analysts that that strategy hadn’t panned out.

“Over the last couple of years, we’ve actually been removing labor from the stores… with the hope that equipment could offset the removal of the labor,” he said. “What we’re discovering is the equipment doesn’t solve the customer-service experience that we need to provide.”