SpendscapeCompanies · Restaurants
Starbucks
AdvertiserSBUX
Starbucks spent $870M on advertising and marketing in fiscal 2025, up 45.7% on the year before and +254% since 2019. That's 2.3% of revenue, more than in 2019: leaning in.
$870Mmarketing spend, FY2025
+45.7%vs the year before
2.3%of revenue (+1.4 pts vs 2019)
Walk the talksay vs do
Marketing spend by year
Bars: advertising and marketing expense, $B (10-K). Line: spend as a share of revenue.
What they told investors
“So I think all of that goes together with that great full customer experience, and we're seeing it with the uplifts.”Catherine Smith · 2026 Q3 · transcript
“But we really have just reallocated some of the less effective discounts into far more effective marketing dollars.”management · 2026 Q1 · transcript
What the 10-K says about marketing
- investing in brand “Our brand names, trademarks, and other intellectual property are critical assets that support brand awareness and product development across domestic and international markets. We protect these assets through a combination of trademarks, copyrights, service marks, trade secrets,…” 10-K, Nov 14, 2025
Say vs do
Walk the talk. In 219 statements from its leaders in interviews, 19 argued for investing in brand and 1 for cutting; the filed spend went up.
In the news
- Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Says It's Back as Cafe Makeover Enters Next Phase Kalkine Media · Sep 28, 2026 · brand strategy
- Vimenti and Starbucks launch $5 campaign to support Puerto Rican families WJournalpr · Sep 28, 2026 · campaign
- Starbucks is “accelerating” redesign efforts across North America al.com · 2026-09 · brand strategy