New Starbucks boss gets whopping £88m pay package – and can work from the beach!

Starbucks’ new boss – the ‘Messi of the restaurant industry’ – is set to receive £88m in one of the biggest hires ever in the US.

And that’s not all: Brian Niccol can work from a remote office in sunny Newport Beach, California, instead of at the coffee chain’s headquarters in Seattle.

And he can use the Starbucks jet to visit the headquarters when needed. If Niccol hits the targets, his full package will make him one of America’s highest paid bosses.

“He is seen as the (footballer Lionel) Messi of the restaurant industry,” said Bernstein analyst Danilo Gargiulo.

A restructuring at Starbucks sent shares soaring 24 percent, while burrito chain Chipotle, which Niccol is exiting after a successful turnaround, lost 7 percent.

Starbucks is struggling, with sales declining and a dispute over alleged ties to Israel.

Niccol becomes the fourth boss in less than three years after Laxman Narasimhan – former boss of British consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser who took over in March 2023 – left with immediate effect.

Niccol’s package includes a £7.8m ‘golden hello’ bonus, £58m in additional share options, an annual salary of £1.25m plus the opportunity to earn up to £18m in share bonuses each year.

He could also receive a cash bonus of almost £2.8 million. Last year he received £17.5 million from Chipotle.