Philippe De Milde departs Starbucks to lead and scale Costco Wholesale's global architecture practice
Philippe De Milde has announced his departure from Starbucks where he spent almost nine years, most recently serving as Director, Frontline & Workforce Application Platforms. He is joining Costco Wholesale and taking on the role of Director, Enterprise Solution Architecture Practice.
In a LinkedIn post, he said: "After eight and half rewarding years at Starbucks, I'm excited to share that I have joined Costco Wholesale as Director, Architecture Practice."
"What drew me to Costco was the opportunity to lead and scale the global architecture practice for one of the world's largest retailers. The combination of global scale, business complexity, and a culture known for investing in its people made this an opportunity I couldn't pass up. Thank you to everyone who helped me transition smoothly. I am ready to get to work. Here is to the next chapter!"
2026 RTIH Innovation Awards
Frontline and workforce technology will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.
The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.
Check out our 2025 winners here.
Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.
In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”
“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”
He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”
Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.
