Good morning.

Ahead of Starbucks' Q3 earnings call this summer, ADWEEK October cover star Brian Niccol's morning Americano was served with a note scrawled in Sharpie: "You got this."

So was it just a nice touch for the boss? Niccol doesn't think so. To him, it's a sign (among other things) that his Back to Starbucks turnaround plan is paying off.

If you've visited a Starbucks since he took over, you've probably noticed some changes: the condiment bar is back, the chairs are comfier, and those Sharpie notes might even extend to your dog's Pup Cup (sorry, cat lovers).

This is all part of the CMO-turned-CEO's plan to reclaim Starbucks as a "third place." At times, that's felt counterintuitive to the QSR playbook that previously helped him turn around Taco Bell's and Chipotle's fortunes.

I sat down with Niccol to find out what's working, what's been harder than he expected, and what's next.

Our wider October package takes a closer look at the strategy, going BTS of chief brand officer Tressie Lieberman's marketing machine, plus the merch drops building Millennial and Gen Z love. We also zoom out at the coffee gold rush that Starbucks started, and the rivals (hello Dutch Bros and Luckin) now competing for the customers it created.

Also, heads up: tomorrow, courtesy of SiriusXM Media, the ADWEEK paywall comes down for the day, giving you free access to all our reporting.

Now, go get your caffeine fix.

Rebecca Stewart, brand editor

Must Reads

1. Brian Niccol Reveals the Next Era of Starbucks

"It's not real until it's in the coffeehouse," is what Starbucks boss Brian Niccol tells his team. Across 40,000 stores, even small changes take time — and turning things around at speed is something Niccol told me he underestimated.

Still, two years in, his Back to Starbucks blueprint is landing. Comparable sales are up 7.9%, and stock has risen 30% since he was named CEO.

My exclusive interview with Niccol gets inside the turnaround and where it's headed next.

On arrival, the former marketer treated Starbucks' slump as a brand problem and has been willing to let margins take the hit to fix it. Now, the question is whether his bet on hospitality can scale across more than 40,000 coffeehouses while keeping investors happy, too.

2. Inside Starbucks' Marketing Machine with Global Chief Brand Officer Tressie Lieberman

Niccol has surrounded himself with familiar voices at Starbucks, including Tressie Lieberman, who joined as chief brand officer in November 2024 and had spent decades working with Niccol at Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Chipotle. Over the last two years, she's been rebuilding the marketing machine that powers it by "moving at the speed of culture."

Here’s how she did it, and what she’s planning next.

Viral merch collections that sell out quickly have been central to Lieberman's strategy to "unlock core memories around the brand."

Brittaney Kiefer takes a look at the buzzy merch collabs helping Starbucks build brand love, from Peanuts and Hello Kitty to fashion companies such as Dandy and Roller Rabbit.

Caffeine Gold Rush: The Competition for Coffee Fans Has Never Been Hotter

And Robert Klara writes about why everyone else now wants a cup of the modern coffee market that Starbucks built.

He hears from analysts about how Dutch Bros, 7 Brew, Luckin, and a crowd of others are presenting new challenges for the Seattle-founded chain.

ADWEEK's Sports Marketing MVPs 2026: Bringing the Heat On and Off the Court

Now, for something that isn't coffee but comes in just as hot.

Today we reveal ADWEEK’s annual Sports Marketing MVP list, which honors the sports marketing executives crafting savvy strategies to connect with fans while delivering results for their companies.

From the mind behind NBCUniversal’s back-to-back record-setting Olympic Games to the woman ensuring WNBA games will be sold out while the team is still in development, these major league marketers are transforming the business of sports.

The Round Up

OpenAI pilots brand suitability controls with DoubleVerify and IAS, (ADWEEK).
TikTok expands its off-platform ad network to U.S. advertisers, (ADWEEK).
And adds an AI shopping assistant, (ADWEEK).
This Noom ad leans into fears around GLP-1 weight rebound, (ADWEEK).
Why marketers are acting like nightclub promoters, (WSJ).
Uber tries to prove that Uber Eats ads don't hurt physical restaurant sales, (ADWEEK).
Piers Morgan's Uncensored launches paid tier, (ADWEEK).
The new rules of AI brand visibility are actually the old rules of marketing, (Brandshare from Gist).

Revolving Door

Albertsons' retail media head Brian Monahan exits, (ADWEEK).
CNN’s Mark Thompson and CBS’ Bari Weiss join Skydance's leadership team, (ADWEEK).
R/GA names Hope Nardini ECD, (LBB).
McDonald's Media Network taps Chris Lindquist, (LinkedIn).
Morning Brew acquires Express Checkout, (ADWEEK).

One More Thing

Before you go, we have one more reveal today.

ADWEEK’s Team Visionary Awards recognize the people often quietly uplifting their organizations, from the bombastic social squads lighting up the platforms, to the brand teams crafting the public image of their companies, and the media planners making sure all that hard work makes it in front of the right audiences.

See who made the 2026 cut here.

Lauren Johnson will be back with you tomorrow.

1. Brian Niccol Reveals the Next Era of Starbucks

2. Inside Starbucks' Marketing Machine with Global Chief Brand Officer Tressie Lieberman

3. Beyond Coffee: The Starbucks Merchandise Collabs Building New Brand Love

4. Caffeine Gold Rush: The Competition for Coffee Fans Has Never Been Hotter

5. ADWEEK's Sports Marketing MVPs 2026: Bringing the Heat On and Off the Court