For brands seeking to win back customer loyalty, the process can be long and slow.

Starbucks had already begun this before CEO Brian Niccol joined in 2024to drive its transformation forward, and Target has also been working for years toimprove the in-store experience. Kohl's, meanwhile, has been continuouslyrefining its core experience。

since early 2025. These companies have recorded better financial results as their customer experience improved, and their executives share a similar attitude toward strategy: the experience must not just be good most of the time, but exceptional every single time.

The paths these three companies are taking to drive greater consistency differ. Starbucks emphasizes the importance of connecting employees with customers, Kohl's wants to ensure customers can always find what they need, and Target strives to make every in-store experience delightful.

Here is an overview of the strategies each company is advancing.

Starbucks: Seeking stability through its employees

Starbucks is acustomer-oriented company, and its baristas are the ones who deliver the Starbucks experience to customers, CEO Brian Niccol said at the Bernstein Annual Strategic Decisions Conference last month.

Niccol noted that the company's investment in pay and benefits has brought more stability to its stores, which helps provide a more consistent experience for customers. Starbucks also offers quarterly bonuses to eligible hourly employees who perform well.

"If we deliver an exceptional customer experience and enable our partners to consistently deliver that experience to customers, I am very confident we will win," Niccol said at the conference.

Reliability is the core of the"Green Apron Service" programthe coffee chain launched last summer. The strategy includes operational guidelines for five key experience moments, including requiring employees to warmly greet customers and make a connection when handing over drinks.

Improvements in scheduling, technology, and leadership are making the Green Apron Service"run more reliably every day", Niccol said on the company's April earnings call. "As a result, customer experience scores continued to rise during the quarter."

For customers who view Starbucks as a "treat," the company needs to ensure they feel the treat is worth it, Niccol said. A touch of small luxury can mean a lot to customers.

Starbucks' overall focus on a consistent customer experience has beenreflected in its positive second-quarter fiscal 2026 results.

Kohl's: Trading inventory adjustments for a better experience

Kohl's is emphasizing consistency between its online and in-store experiencesas the retailer works to win backcustomers it has lost。

. According to CEO Michael Bender, the retailer is optimizing its merchandise curation to ensure every customer who walks in can find the specific items they want. Inventory management is at the heart of a reliable and consistent experience.

"Trip assurance must become a key differentiator for us going forward," Bender said on the company's earnings call last month. "Simply put, customers need to be able to come to Kohl's, find what they want in the right size and color, and at an affordable price."

Bender said Kohl's had become over-saturated in certain items and categories. The company is addressing this by reducing duplicate products and trimming the number of choices both online and in stores.

"These changes are designed to drive a more consistent shopping experience, improving clarity, purpose, and relevance of the assortment," Bender said.

Kohl's is also making its promotions more consistent. Last year, the retailer began increasing the number of brands where coupons could be used, which led to "an immediate and sustained increase in the percentage of sales from coupon usage," Bender said.

Since it began improving inventory consistency, the retailer's performance has improved, recording itsbest comparable sales performance in more than four yearsin the first quarter of fiscal 2026. However, sales still declined year over year.

According to CFO Jill Timm, the sales decline was due to lower transaction volume. Kohl's trip assurance strategy is part of its efforts to reverse this downward trend.

Target: Treating consistency as key to sustainable growth

Sustainable growth is "theonly winning path in retail", CEO Michael Fiddelke said on the company's earnings call last month. A more consistent in-store experience is one of the pillars of the retailer's strategy.

"For Target, that means leading with merchandising authority, elevating the guest experience, accelerating technology adoption, and strengthening our team and communities," Fiddelke said. "Achieving our vision of being the most joyful shopping experience in retail means executing that strategy clearly and consistently."

According to EVP and COO Lisa Roath, product findability and inventory availability are the biggest pain points for Target customers. The retailer aims to strengthen store fundamentals while also creating moments of inspiration for customers.

Roathtook on the COO role in February, after more than 20 years at Target. She said her diverse perspective gained across roles in operations, stores, and marketing will help drive greater consistency at the retailer.

"That breadth has given me a deep understanding of how strategy comes to life for the guest—from the products we choose, to how they flow through our network, to how our team presents them along with an elevated experience every day," Roath said on the company's earnings call last month. "That perspective matters because strategy only creates value when it consistently shows up in front of our guests."

Target's push for consistency includesimproving infrastructure such as restrooms in thousands of stores, as well as providing additionalguest experience trainingfor more than 300,000 employees and managers, with the goal of linking daily behaviors to clear expectations, Roath said.

"Early feedback has been very positive, with teams saying they appreciate the clarity around priorities," Roath said. "Equally important, we are already seeing early improvements in guest experience and satisfaction metrics in the stores that have received more support."