Michelle Gass, seen as one of Starbucks founder and chief executive Howard Schultz’s most trusted lieutenants, is to leave the global coffee chain after 16 years to join Kohl, the third-largest US department store chain, in the newly-created role of chief customer officer.
Gass most recently headed up Starbuck’s Europe, Middle East and Africa operation until being named this month to work with Schultz at the company’s Seattle headquarters as part of a senior leadership team.
She had led the introduction of Frappuccino drinks and VIA instant coffee and oversaw the remake of the company’s Seattle Best Coffee brand and was seen as playing a key role in the brand’s revival in the US.
The company said that Gass left the EMEA region in “significantly better health than when she arrived, with renewed business momentum and a roadmap for a strong trajectory of sustainable growth and profitability”
Her replacement was Starbucks UK managing director Kris Engskov, with the chain currently looking for a replacement to oversee its UK operations.
