ADWEEK

Can Brian Niccol make @Starbucks feel like Starbucks again ADWEEK’s October issue explores how CEO Brian Niccol’s Back to Starbucks plan aims to restore the coffeehouse experience through refurbished stores, a simpler menu, a revamped loyalty program, and more staff during rushes. The turnaround has improved comps and renewed the brand’s focus, but controversies persist. His $96 million pay package and company-jet commute drew criticism. Starbucks has closed hundreds of stores, cut thousands of jobs, and remains locked in a dispute with unionized workers. Rising coffee and tariff costs, along with staffing expenses, add pressure. Starbucks is betting that service and operations can fuel growth without eroding trust among customers, employees, and investors. Read the full cover story 👉

Negroni Week may be over, but there’s always time for one. 🥃 We stopped by ViceVersa in Miami to make a Milano-Torino Negroni, with @CampariAmerica bringing its signature bittersweet kick to every pour.

RT @awbrandshare: Shoppers know a couple hundred brands at best, so great products get lost in the noise. @InMobi and @glance_inspires founder and CEO Naveen Tewari explains how AI personal shoppers can fix discovery and why CMOs will soon market to agents.

Artificial intelligence startup Netomi is changing its leadership team as it tries to move AI out of the chat window in the corner of a website and into the website itself. Learn more about the new hires 👇

Creator marketing platform Devotion has brought Ed Victori aboard as its first chief operating officer, where he will oversee day-to-day operations and focus on scaling the team and infrastructure.

"As for Shane [Gillis], if he's curious about the shorts, we've made them particularly easy to find. Just search Shane on our website.” - Noel Mack, Chief Brand Officer at @Gymshark 🤭

For the week of October 5, @ABCWorldNews led with 8.219 million viewers, followed by @NBCNightlyNews with 6.482 million and @CBSEveningNews with 4.219 million. CBS was the only broadcast to grow among adults 25–54, gaining 5%.

.@Target's Roundel is encouraging advertisers to measure incrementality, which identifies sales generated by ads that would not have happened otherwise. Yet only 8% use it as their primary performance metric, even though 66% cite sales growth as their main investment goal.

“My customer is my BFF.” It’s a sentiment every brand should embrace, but for LWYA founder and @QVC host @KimGravel, it’s more than a feeling, but a truth. At Brandweek, Gravel shared why she stays hands-on with her brands and why direct-to-consumer sales and live selling play to her strengths more than traditional brick-and-mortar retail.

Branded entertainment often goes unseen because brands overlook essential planning, not because they lack strong ideas. Success requires a different approach from traditional advertising. Brands must understand what audiences want. They need clear business goals and measurable results.

Between @Meta's Muse, upgraded AI tools for advertisers, and blocking @TikTok_US campaigns from advertising on its platforms, the tech company has been busy. Get the latest in @KendraEBarnett's latest AI, Tech, and Money newsletter.

How do you know when a market shift is real enough to change the business around it? For Harry Kargman, in the CTV context, it was clear: when @netflix introduced advertising, Kargo would enter the category. On this week’s The Speed of Culture Podcast, the Founder and CEO of Kargo joins Matt Britton of @AskSuzyBiz to discuss how the company has spent 23 years navigating major changes in advertising. Harry gets into contextual targeting after privacy changes, bringing proven creator content into CTV, and why successful pivots depend on building an organization that expects change rather than fears it.

@netflix 🎧 Listen to the full episode: @Apple: @Spotify:

Following Mubadala Capital’s $6.2 billion acquisition of @CCOutdoorNA, Wade Davis is joining as CEO and executive chairman, replacing Scott Wells, while former @paramountco advertising chief John Halley becomes chief commercial officer.

.@AmericanExpress CMO Elizabeth Rutledge will retire in March 2027, after more than 36 years with the company. She joined in 1990 and became CMO in 2018. She helped launch the “Powerful Backing” brand platform and led partnerships with @F1, @coachella, @aclfestival, and the @usopen. American Express expects to announce her successor in the coming weeks. Rutledge said she is leaving having fulfilled her dream of working for the company. Read more 👉

so that's why Jennifer Lawrence joined @Instagram

RT @awbrandshare: Video builds awareness. @AmazonAds explained that Pause ads deepen the connection, giving streaming advertisers two complementary ways to make an impression in one viewing session.

Creators perform best when they’re free to speak in their own voice. At ADWEEK House during Advertising Week New York, Ryan Delahanty of @BestBuy Ads shares how to build authentic creator partnerships and prove their impact across the funnel. #sponsored

If you live in #NYC or work in #SPAM (social, PR, advertising, marketing), you’ve probably seen the videos from @GoodAmerican’s influencer event, and they're not positive... What are your thoughts: Is all press good press?

In this week’s On Background, ADWEEK's @MarkStenberg3 examines eFormed Ventures’ acquisition of @outdoorlife and its plan to turn the publication’s audience and product recommendations into a more direct commerce business using its AI platform, Resonance. Read more 👇

.@FoxTV is entering the next phase of its agentic rollout. This means adding more agency partners, expanding agentic capabilities, and looking to make agentic a bigger part of upfront conversations in the future.