Starbucks sparks backlash after concerning company policy comes to light: 'It's a challenge'

In an effort to keep its chief executive officer safe following increased media scrutiny of heads of major corporations, Starbucks has mandated that its CEO travel exclusively by the company's private jet.

According to a recent Bloomberg report, Starbucks' CEO, Brian Niccol, previously had to pay the company to use its private jet for personal travel. Niccol was responsible for covering any personal travel charges that exceeded his annual limit of $250,000. 

However, since the shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO, companies are taking extra measures to strengthen the security protocols regarding their company's corporate leaders, said Courtney Yu, director of research at Equilar, per Bloomberg. 

Firms offering executive protection experienced an immediate rise in attention from corporate organizations that sought their services out, following the UnitedHealthcare attack, for fear of potential copycat attacks on their CEOs. 

According to the company's filing, per Bloomberg, due to "the current threat landscape," Starbucks felt it necessary to hike up security protocols for its CEO. 

Starbucks responded by mandating that its CEO travel only by the company's private jet or via hired personal drivers in fiscal year 2025 — all on the company's dime. The company also paid for temporary housing arrangements for the CEO, which amounted to more than $370,000 in 2025. 

In total, the company spent $1.1 million on executive protection, while Niccol's private jet usage cost just under $1 million, per Bloomberg.

While this move to strike Niccol's previous travel restrictions in the name of executive safety is a strategic business decision to safeguard business operations, it also encourages excessive personal travel. 

In 2024, 250,000 of the wealthiest people in the world, with a collective net worth of $31 trillion, contributed 17.2 million tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere by flying private, according to PBS. Per the Environmental Protection Agency, this amount of carbon is equivalent to 3.6 million gas-powered vehicles driven for an entire year. 

Starbucks' latest move underscores concerns about how companies can balance effective executive security without exacerbating environmental harm. 

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It also undermines the company's public commitments to sustainability, which include sustainably sourcing caffeine products — a subject currently being challenged in court — and reducing the company's water and carbon impacts. 

"Yeah, you can't have a private jet to & from CA & WA while expecting customers to drink thru paper straws," one Redditor wrote under a post about Starbucks CEO's unlimited travel, which was posted to the r/Starbucks subreddit. 

"It's a challenge making it work on 31 million," another user commented, citing the CEO's annual salary in 2025.

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