The surprising old-fashioned perk coming back to Starbucks after new CEO went undercover

Starbucks' new CEO Brian Niccol is on a mission to turn the coffee giant's fortunes around - starting with a retro perk.

Niccol went undercover in recent weeks at Starbucks locations across Los Angeles to observe issues firsthand, The Wall Street Journal reported .

The former boss of Chipotle was brought in after nine months of falling sales this year - after years of growth. Customers are fed up with high prices and long lines.

One idea he's considering is reintroducing free newspapers for customers enjoying their coffee in-store.

Other planned changes include bringing back Sharpie pens for handwritten notes on customer cups and working on speeding up simple orders.

During his undercover visits, Niccol was surprised by how long it took to get his basic Americano, watching as baristas were slowed down by complex orders from other customers.

'Sometimes you just want a brewed cup of coffee really quick,' Niccol told the Journal.

To help assist with speed Nicol announced last week that self-service condiment bars, where customers can add their own extra milk and sugars, would be coming back to locations next year.

Niccol took over the company in September.

After years of solid growth, sales have fallen for each of the three quarters in 2024.

In the most recent July to September period, Starbucks sales dropped six percent .

Cash-strapped customers are increasingly put off by high prices and long wait times for drinks.

'We're in a little bit of a ditch, but that's not to say that we're not capable of getting out of that ditch quickly, effectively, smartly,' the CEO told the company at an internal meeting following the poor earnings report in October.

Niccol replaced the company's last CEO, Laxman Narasimhan, who was ousted by the board in August after just 17 month in the role.

Niccol is well regarded by Wall Street for turning around Chipotle's fortunes as CEO, and Starbucks' stock is up 26 percent since he took over.

So far Niccol has announced some measures that have been popular with Starbucks consumers.

Last week, the chain announced it would stop charging extra for dairy alternatives in its drinks.

Previously, surcharges for options like almond and oat milk were as high as 80 cents in some locations. The new policy, effective today, November 7, responds to years of customer complaints.

This change follows Starbucks' decision last month to scale back certain promotions and discounts as part of a strategy to strengthen its finances and position itself as a premium brand.