Starbucks has built out a 4,624-square-foot office — replete with “luxury” finishes — that CEO Brian Niccol can use while home in Newport Beach, California.
Business Insider has learned that construction of the 13th-floor space — dubbed “Project Sunshine” in internal documents — was completed on July 2.
Photos reviewed by BI show the office features polished chrome finishes, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Pacific coastline, and an espresso machine that would cost $14,000 if you weren’t a multinational coffee giant.
It’s a five-minute drive from Niccol’s home base and about 1,200 miles from Starbucks’ headquarters in Seattle, where most corporate workers were recently told to return to the office four days a week or leave the company.
“Like every company, we want our CEO to be as productive as possible given the intense demands on his time,” a spokesperson told Business Insider in a statement.
“Brian spends the majority of his time visiting stores across the country and around the world and working in Seattle where he has both a home and an office. For when he is in California, he has access to one of our Starbucks offices — which will also be used by other Starbucks partners (employees) — with meeting space allowing him to use his time effectively and keep moving the business forward.”
The company’s plan to build a Newport Beach office was first disclosed in an SEC filing that outlined Niccol’s executive compensation package when he was hired last August.
In addition to giving him a $1.6 million base salary and stock rewards of more than $95 million in his first four months on the job, the filing said, the company would establish a “small remote office” near Niccol’s home in Orange County so he wouldn’t have to commute daily to Starbucks’ Seattle base.
Starbucks has said that Niccol purchased a home in Seattle after starting in September 2024. It’s not clear how often he is at the company’s main office.
The Newport Beach outpost is located in a commercial complex owned by the Irvine Company. It’s near two country clubs, a steakhouse, and a hotel. Just outside the building lobby, in the shade of a row of palm trees, there’s a ping-pong table, a flat-screen television, and outdoor workspaces that can be used by all tenants.
Construction permits reviewed by Business Insider show Gensler, one of the world’s leading architectural firms, was hired to design the space.
Pacific Tusk Builders, a boutique contracting firm with a portfolio of projects for brands including Nickelodeon and Microsoft, completed the construction, permits show.
Representatives for Gensler — known for designing the second-tallest skyscraper in the world, the Shanghai Tower, Chase Center in San Francisco, and Los Angeles’ Academy Museum of Motion Pictures — did not respond to a request for comment.
A representative for Pacific Tusk Builders told BI the project was “confidential,” and they could not discuss details of its build-out.
A floor plan for the construction, seen by BI, details instructions for the architectural firm and contracting team to create a space with “elegant lighting” and “luxury” finishes, including “gothic white oak” flooring and custom sinks and countertops.
Renovations to the existing space were to include a near-total remodel from floors to light fixtures, including custom colors, polished concrete, and oak floors, and multiple conference rooms with picturesque views, according to the floor plan.
The floor plan shows an executive office with an ensuite bathroom, from which an existing shower was removed; a board room; six offices; two meeting rooms; open workspaces, and a break area. The executive office is the largest room at 576 square feet — including the private bathroom.
A spokesperson for Starbucks told BI the recently completed office is the first phase of construction for its satellite office in Newport Beach, and the company has additional space to expand its footprint in the area over time.
Photos of the corner office reveal an open, airy layout with sleek leather furniture and a combination of both classic and new Starbucks-themed artwork, including a “Back to Starbucks” poster — a nod to Niccol’s revitalization campaign at the company.
Niccol came to Starbucks from Chipotle, where, as CEO, he oversaw a huge expansion, a doubling of revenue, and an eight-fold increase in the stock price. During his tenure at the Mexican restaurant chain, he moved the company’s headquarters from Denver to Newport Beach.
With Niccol now at its helm, Starbucks is attempting to reverse slumping sales, improve the customer experience, and address problems with its mobile ordering system and long wait times.
Niccol previously faced backlash from some shareholders, corporate partners, and environmentalists for using the company’s private jet to travel from Newport Beach to Seattle, where the iconic brand is deeply embedded with the local culture; critics said it clashed with the company’s sustainability goals.
The strict RTO mandate he issued earlier this month has also raised hackles among some corporate employees. It revoked the remote status of some managers and required others to relocate to Seattle or Toronto, or leave.
As Business Insider has reported, some corporate Starbucks employees have expressed discontent about the culture shift, posting fliers about it and venting in Slack channels.
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