Sentences and paragraphs of SBUX's Risk Factors and MD&A, 10-K 2025-11-14 against 10-K 2024-11-20.
Each links to the text at sec.gov.
AddedRisk Factors
Various factors, events, or conditions may result in a diminution or erosion of trust in our brand value. Adverse developments pertaining to the matters discussed elsewhere in this risk factors section may negatively impact the value of our brands. Such developments may include difficulties executing strategic initiatives, adapting to shifting consumer preferences, or managing global operations, and challenges stemming from macroeconomic volatility, supply chain pressures and disruptions, or an evolving competitive, regulatory, social, and geopolitical landscape. The impact of such developments on the value of our brands may be exacerbated if they receive considerable publicity or if they result in litigation. The value of our brands may be affected by actual or perceived developments, whether isolated or recurring, whether the result of actions by us or our business partners or the result of external developments, and whether such developments are in our control. Negative commentary about Starbucks, even if inaccurate or malicious, has in the past, and could in the future, damage the value of our brand, and adverse impacts may be compounded by social media, video-sharing, and messaging platforms that could dramatically increase the speed with which negative publicity may be disseminated, often before we have a meaningful opportunity to investigate, respond to, and address an issue. In addition, we cannot ensure that our store partners, licensees, or other business partners will not act or refrain from acting in a manner that adversely affects the value and relevance of our brand. Because brand value is based in part on consumer perceptions on a variety of subjective qualities, it may be difficult to address developments negatively impacting the value of our brands in a timely and effective manner to mitigate harm.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedRisk Factors
The diminution of, or erosion of trust in, our brand value may have negative consequences for the Company. Consumer demand for our products and our brand value could diminish significantly if we or our employees, licensees, or other business partners fail to preserve the quality of our products, or act, or are perceived to act, in an unethical, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate manner. To the extent third parties object to actions or positions taken or perceived to have been taken by us, it may generate negative sentiment around our business. Developments affecting the value of our brands have in the past, and may in the future, trigger boycotts of our stores, products, and brand. Each of these consequences, individually and collectively, could have potentially material impacts on our brand value, business performance, and financial results.
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AddedRisk Factors
marketing environment. Decisions to collaborate or refrain from collaborating with certain parties may impact our brand image and, consequently, our financial performance. Our programs may not always reach consumers as intended, particularly given the wide range of generational, geographical, cultural, and socioeconomic characteristics and channels of communication used by our customers, and effective resource allocation across channels, including digital, is critical. Additionally, factors such as operating costs, competitor strategies, and inflation may affect our pricing decisions, which could impact demand. For example, there is no guarantee future cost increases will be absorbed by customers. If our marketing or pricing strategies underperform relative to competitors, our sales and market share could decline. Likewise, if we do not continuously strengthen our capabilities in marketing, data analytics (including artificial intelligence and machine learning) and innovation to understand and maintain or grow consumer interest, brand loyalty, and market share while strategically expanding into other profitable categories of the commercial beverage industry, our business could be negatively affected.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedRisk Factors
We undertake these initiatives in the context of ongoing efforts to adapt to shifting consumer behaviors amid economic volatility, optimize our mix of licensed and company-operated stores, expand relevant product offerings across dayparts, and drive growth in cold beverages and Channel Development partnerships, while also advancing appropriate sustainability efforts, managing climate-related risks, and reducing operating costs. Risks to successful and timely implementation of these initiatives include delays or cancellations of store openings due to labor or material shortages, permit procurement issues, or lack of suitable real estate; supply chain scalability and sustainability challenges; underperformance or delays in product innovation; remodel disruptions or cost overruns; coordination and execution challenges; failure to realize cost savings; increased taxation; regulatory constraints, including public health mandates; credit rating deterioration; and geopolitical instability. If these initiatives fail to deliver expected results or we do not fully realize their intended benefits, our financial performance may suffer. Additionally, prioritizing these efforts over other organizational needs or misallocating resources could materially impact our business and operating results.
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AddedRisk Factors
Furthermore, we may be unsuccessful in implementing strategic initiatives through large acquisitions, integrations, divestitures, partnerships, joint ventures, or other strategic transactions. If we are unable to complete such transactions or successfully integrate and develop acquired businesses, including the effective management of integration activities, we could fail to achieve the expected increases in revenues and operating results or the anticipated synergies and cost savings. In the past we have been, and in the future we may be, unable to realize the expected benefits of strategic transactions, or it may also take longer than expected to realize the expected benefits. This has in the past required, and may in the future require, us to assess potential impairment of assets, including goodwill and intangibles. Any resulting impairment charges could materially affect our financial results.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
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AddedRisk Factors
resulted, and may in the future result, in insufficient or excess inventory, increased inventory markdowns, and higher costs. Any of these outcomes could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedRisk Factors
Additionally, health concerns related to ingredients such as caffeine, dairy, sugar, or allergens—whether accurate or not—along with increased litigation, regulation and regulatory scrutiny, or taxes on certain food components, ingredients, or additives, could reduce demand and harm our results. Shifts in consumer behavior, including dietary changes or use of weight-loss drugs, may also impact sales.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedRisk Factors
We may experience food or beverage-safety incidents such as contamination, mislabeling, or adulteration during any stage of production or preparation. We rely on third-party suppliers for many of our ingredients and finished products. A failure to meet quality standards—even if due to factors beyond our control—could result in public exposure, regulatory scrutiny or action, litigation (including product liability claims and class actions), or temporary store closures, which could materially harm our business. Additionally, clean water is essential for beverage preparation, and access may be limited in certain international markets. As we expand our offerings requiring temperature control, the risk of food-safety incidents increases if proper conditions are not maintained due to mechanical failure or human error. Such incidents may harm our brand and reputation and could negatively impact our business and financial performance.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedRisk Factors
Reports—whether accurate or not—of food- or beverage-safety issues such as contamination, mislabeling, or adulteration during any stage of production or preparation have historically harmed the reputations of companies in our industry. Any perceived association with such incidents, even if unfounded, could harm our reputation and materially impact our business and financial performance. Food-safety incidents involving competitors or shared suppliers, even if unrelated to Starbucks, could generate negative publicity and impact our sales regionally or globally. In addition, real or perceived concerns about food safety issues, such as phthalates, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), microplastics or heavy metals in the U.S. food supply chain, could impact consumers’ confidence in our offerings. Confirmed food-safety issues may also result in product recalls. A widespread product recall could lead to significant financial losses from recall costs, inventory destruction, lost sales, and reputational damage. Declines in customer traffic due to safety concerns, negative publicity, or store closures could adversely affect our operations.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
In support of our “Back to Starbucks” strategy, we completed our assessment of our coffeehouse portfolio late in the fourth quarter and made decisions to close stores that did not demonstrate a viable path to profitability, or meet our standards of delivering a warm, welcoming space for our customers and partners. Our store closures in North America were substantially
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
completed in fiscal 2025 and the International store closures are expected to be completed in the first half of fiscal 2026. As a result of these closures, we expect a fiscal 2026 reduction in our baseline North America company-operated revenues, partially offset by sales transfer to nearby coffeehouses that remain open. We also expect the future impact to operating margins to be slightly accretive. With a healthier base of coffeehouses, we see meaningful opportunity for disciplined growth. We anticipate that these actions, along with simplifying our broader support organization, will allow us to restructure, redeploy, and refocus our resources on priorities that we believe will deliver long-term sustainable business growth.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
We expect that the macroeconomic challenges we have been experiencing, including impacts from new tariffs and dynamic coffee prices, will continue; however, we are encouraged by the results we have seen from our “Back to Starbucks” initiatives. Following our Green Apron Service model going live across our full U.S company-operated store portfolio in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, we are focused on empowering coffeehouse leaders to take ownership of sustaining the model as our permanent way of working, which we expect to enhance the customer experience and drive future transaction growth. Further, as announced in early November 2025, we look forward to working with our new strategic joint venture partner, Boyu Capital, to accelerate long-term growth in China. We believe, through strategic prioritization, that we are taking the right actions now and in the future, specifically through our investments in store partners, uplifting the coffeehouse experience through disciplined capital deployment, introducing new food and beverage platforms, reimagining the Starbucks rewards program, and enhancing support for our licensee partners. These actions, while driving more efficiency, accountability, and agility as a company, will lay the foundation for the future of Starbucks.
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AddedMD&A
General and administrative expenses increased $94 million, primarily due to the Leadership Experience 2025 ($81 million).
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AddedMD&A
Income from equity investees decreased $53.4 million, primarily due to lower income from our North American Coffee Partnership joint venture.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
Interest expense decreased $19 million, primarily due to savings from cross-currency interest rate hedging, partially offset by higher interest rates on refinanced long-term debt.
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AddedMD&A
During the third quarter of fiscal 2025, we replaced our $3.0 billion unsecured five-year revolving credit facility (the “2021 credit facility”) with a new $3.0 billion unsecured five-year revolving credit facility (the “2025 credit facility”).
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
2025 credit facility, interest on the outstanding amount of the indebtedness under the 2025 credit facility will bear interest at a rate per annum equal to 2% in excess of the interest then borne by such borrowings.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
On July 4, 2025, the President of the United States signed and enacted tax legislation into law through a reconciliation bill titled “An Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to title II of H. Con. Res. 14,” commonly referred to as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” This legislation was enacted during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025; therefore, the fiscal 2025 accounting impacts from this tax law change are included in our fourth quarter of fiscal 2025 results. This tax law change did not result in a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. See Note 14, Income Taxes, to the consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of Part II of this 10-K, for further discussion.
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AddedMD&A
Cash provided by operating activities was $4.7 billion for fiscal 2025, compared to $6.1 billion for fiscal 2024. The change was primarily due to the decrease in net earnings of $1.9 billion and a net increase of $451.2 million in inventories, which was primarily driven by green and roasted coffee, largely due to elevated coffee prices. These impacts were partially offset by a net increase of $713.2 million in loss on disposal, impairment, and accelerated amortization of assets primarily driven by restructuring costs as part of the “Back to Starbucks” strategy and a net increase in accounts payable, primarily due to payment timing.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, as part of the “Back to Starbucks” strategy, the Company assessed its existing store portfolio with respect to both whether coffeehouses had a viable path to offering the physical environment consistent with the brand and a clear path to financial performance, and we closed, or plan to close, coffeehouses that did not meet these criteria.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗
AddedMD&A
As a result, we recorded $892 million in restructuring and impairments in our consolidated statements of earnings during the fiscal year ended September 28, 2025. This total included $352.8 million related to impairment and disposition of company-operated store assets and $239.3 million primarily associated with accelerated amortization of ROU lease assets and other lease exit costs due to store closures prior to the end of contractual lease terms. Refer to Note 18, Restructuring, included in Item 8 of Part II of this 10-K, for further discussion.
Read it in 10-K 2025-11-14 at sec.gov ↗