However, the chain faces a number of challenges in the Chinese market: declining consumption, fierce local competition (particularly from Luckin Coffee and tea and bubble tea brands), and pressure on operating costs, especially due to the high rents of its large stores. Last December, The Economist stated that Western companies were being overtaken by Chinese competitors, as in the case of Starbucks, which had lost market share to Luckin Coffee, which as of September 2024 had 21,000 stores in the country, roughly triple the size of the American chain and rapidly growing from 13,000 the previous year. In October, Brian Niccol himself, Starbucks' new CEO, told investors that he faced "extreme" competition in China.