Howard Schultz biography. The success story of Howard Schultz, owner of the Starbucks coffee chain
Howard Schultz got into the coffee business thirty years ago with one goal: to strengthen personal relationships between people over a cup of coffee. He is now the CEO of Starbucks. However, the path to the top was not easy. How did Schultz, a guy from a poor working-class family, overcome all the difficulties and found the largest chain of coffee shops on Earth?
A little biography
Schultz was born on July 19, 1953 in Brooklyn, New York. His family was no different from the rest. In an interview with Bloomberg, he said that he grew up in a neighborhood among poor people. Thus, as a boy, he plunged into the world of human inequality and experienced poverty at an early age. When Schultz was only 7 years old, his father, a truck driver who delivered diapers, injured his leg during his next trip. At that time, there was no health insurance or compensation, so the family was left without a basic income.
In high school, Schultz actively played football and received an athletic scholarship from a university located in Northern Michigan. Then the young man went to college and finally decided for himself that he would not continue playing football. It was necessary to pay for his studies, so the guy had to go to work. He started as a bartender, and sometimes even was a donor.
After graduating in 1975, Schultz worked for a year at a sports facility in Michigan. He was invited to the Xerox company, where he gained experience in communicating with clients. He didn’t last long there and a year later he got a job in a Swedish company related to household utensils.
It was there that Schultz built a career and became first a general manager and then a vice president. He managed a sales team in the New York City office. It was in this company that he first encountered the Starbucks brand: his attention was attracted by the large number of drip coffee makers. Interested, Howard decided to visit Seattle, making an appointment with the owners of the coffee shop: Gerald Baldwin and Gordon Bowker.
Getting to know Starbucks
A year later, then 29-year-old Baldwin (the founder of Starbucks) finally hired Schultz, offering him the position of director of retail operations and marketing. At that time, Starbucks had only three stores that sold coffee by weight for home use. The first Starbucks store still exists and is located in Pike Place Market in Seattle.
Fateful trip to Milan
Schultz's fortunes changed dramatically when he was sent to Milan for a show. Walking around the city, the young man noticed espresso bars where the owners knew all their customers by name and served them various coffee drinks, be it cappuccino or latte. Schultz realized that it was personal relationships that would help sell coffee.
In 1985, Howard left Starbucks after his Italian idea was not accepted by the founders. He soon decided to start his own company, Il Giornale (meaning "daily" in Italian). In order to buy the premises for the coffee shop, Schultz needed to raise more than $1.6 million. He didn’t work at Strakbars for a whole year, trying to open his own chain of coffee shops in the Italian style.
In August 1987, Schultz was offered the position of CEO of Starbucks, which already had six coffee shops.
Popularity of the Starbucks chain
America quickly warmed to this company. In 1992, the Starbucks chain entered the Nasdaq stock exchange. The company already had 165 open points, the income amounted to $93 million for the year. So, by 2000, Starbucks had become a global chain, opened more than 3,500 coffee shops and received $2.2 billion in annual revenue. Shultz became one of the most influential people in America.
Starbucks was not always at its best, and there were failures. So, in 2008, Schultz temporarily closed more than a hundred coffee shops to teach the bartender how to make the perfect espresso.
As part of the reform, Schultz announced that Starbucks is committed to hiring former military personnel. Last year, the company confirmed rumors that it would pay for its employees' college education.
During his time at Starbucks, Schultz always prioritized his employees, whom he calls partners. He offers comprehensive health care and insurance to everyone, perhaps influenced by his father's incident.
Schultz released the extraordinary book “Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Was Built Cup by Cup.”
Starbucks continues to grow and now has annual sales of more than $16 billion, making Schultz wealthy. His net worth is estimated at $3 billion - a true billionaire.
Howard Schultz Starbucks - most often this name appears next to the name of the world's most famous coffee chain, and this is by no means an accident. It is Schultz who is the founder of the Starbucks empire in its current form. At one time, Howard began his work as a hired worker in a small chain of coffee shops in Seattle. Later he became the owner of the company, and made it a real empire.
Howard Schultz biography
This is now Howard Schultz, a world-famous businessman, executive director of a world-famous company, but it all started completely differently.
Howard was born and raised in an ordinary American family. He was born on July 19, 1953 in Brooklyn (New York). His family was not poor, but they didn’t catch stars from the sky either. Most of all, Howard's parents wanted him to grow up to be a worthy man; then no one could have imagined how famous and rich their son would become.
His father was a simple worker who worked in many not the most prestigious jobs. During one of the periods of Howard Schultz's childhood, trouble befell his father. He broke his leg and lost his job. This moment from childhood was forever etched in the memory of the future coffee magnate. A decadent mood reigned in the family at that time; no one knew what would happen next. Schultz Jr. did not want such a life, and strived to become a successful person.
He started working at a very early age. He sold newspapers, was a bartender at a local cafe, worked in a fur shop, etc. These were far from the most pleasant types of income, and Howard himself always dreamed of opening his own business.
Howard Schultz was educated at Northern Michigan University. In 1975, he received his Bachelor's degree there, and began looking for serious work. After working for several years at Xerox, he ended up in the American office of the Swedish company Hamamaplast. This company was engaged in the sale of a wide variety of household appliances. Among their products there was also a place for coffee makers. Thus began the epic with Starbucks, which has been going on for many years.
A young employee of a Swedish company selling household appliances was very surprised by one fact in the sales reports. He saw that a small and unknown company from Seattle was purchasing many coffee makers from him, and the volume of purchases was much larger than many well-known coffee shops in the country. This surprised Howard, and he decided to personally meet the owners of the company.
Arriving in Seattle and meeting the owners of Starbucks, Schultz was simply fascinated. He loved the idea of such coffee shops so much that he really wanted to work there. For almost a year, he literally terrorized the owners of the company with calls asking for work. Schultz had a lot of ideas for modernizing and changing Starbucks, but the owners were rather conservative, and they were scared of this young, assertive guy who wants to turn everything upside down. However, a year later, Howard Schultz still achieved his goal, and he was hired at Starbucks. He received a position in the company. Howard Schultz became Starbucks' chief marketing officer for a reason. He really had a lot of interesting ideas, and he agreed to work at half the salary he had at Hamamaplast.
Shops in Seattle specialized in selling coffee beans for further processing and consumption at home. Having visited Italy and been impressed by the local coffee shops, Howard Schultz got the idea to do something similar in the USA. He believed that just a store selling coffee was too simple; you could create a real chain of coffee shops, where people would come not just to drink coffee, but also to relax and discuss some issues.
Starbucks was supposed to be a real place for leisure
Such ideas did not attract much support from the owners of the company, and Schultz had to leave. However, he did not abandon his idea, having accumulated loans, he opened his own coffee shop in Seattle, in which he embodied his ideas. The establishment became very popular in a short time. And soon Howard Schultz learned that the owners of Starbucks stores were going to sell their business. Schultz fell into even greater debt, but was able to buy out Starbucks. He assured creditors that within just 5 years he would open 125 coffee shops throughout the United States. The result exceeded even Howard's wildest assumptions. He opened many more coffee shops, gradually turning them into an all-American brand.
Howard Schultz at Starbucks is an ongoing story full of twists and surprises. His unconventional approach to business, and his love for what he does, has made the Starbucks chain a global brand that is recognized everywhere, and the company's shares are traded on stock exchanges.
Schultz often embarked on various experiments that did not really fit into the strategy of chains of establishments selling and preparing coffee. So, for example, when it became clear that coffee sales were falling in the summer and visitors would like some kind of soft drinks, Schultz, after weighing the pros and cons, went on an experiment. Then a milk-coffee cocktail was created, called Frapuccino. The cocktail became legendary, and soon PepsiCo bought the license to produce it in bottles.
There have been many similar stories during the existence of Starbucks under the leadership of Schultz. This is probably why Starbucks remains the market leader and the most popular coffee chain in the world today.
Starbucks Corporation (Starbucks) is an American coffee company and chain of coffee shops. In December 2016, the network included more than 24,000 retail outlets worldwide. Starbucks specializes in deep roasted coffee, and the company's specialty is high quality customer service.
If you want to taste great coffee with an exceptionally deep taste, but at the same time do not like to settle on any one brand, then be sure to visit the Starbucks coffee shop.
This is the largest worldwide chain of coffee shops, which is distinguished by the highest quality of service anywhere on the planet, wherever it is located. It is known that these coffee shops were founded by Howard Schultz.
Americans say with a bit of irony that after work and home, Starbucks coffee shops are the third most visited place. Over the past few decades, Starbucks has been rightfully called one of the main symbols of modern America.
In terms of their popularity and fame, they are not inferior to the McDonald’s restaurant chain. Moreover, the company’s foreign expansion has led to the fact that Starbucks coffee shops are now loved far beyond the borders of the United States of America. The success story of this extraordinary company is incredibly unusual, but at the same time simple.
It all started in 1971, when three enterprising young men from Seattle put together their $1,350 deposits, borrowed another $5,000, and were able to open a coffee bean store. Few people believed in the success of their venture, because they had no experience in trading or providing catering services.
The title was chosen from the name of the main character from the novel Moby Dick, which was written by Herman Melville. A little later, a logo was invented that depicted a stylized siren.
By the way, due to the image of naked female breasts on the logo, it was quite controversial and caused a lot of indignation in society. Therefore, the logo was soon transformed, and more than once. Today, its original version can only be seen at the first store in Seattle.
Due to the fact that the company had no reputation in the eyes of suppliers, they only worked with those they knew personally. Therefore, Alfred Pitou became the first official supplier of products for the Starbucks store. Cooperation with this person was extremely expensive. The owners of Starbucks sought to reduce costs, like any entrepreneur, and therefore were forced to abandon such an unprofitable partner.
In the early eighties, the talented leader Howard Schultz came to Starbucks. At that time, the company already had a reputation as a well-known specialist in the field of roasting coffee beans, and a respected seller of coffee, not only beans, but also ground. Going on a business trip to Italy, Howard became acquainted with the rich traditions of coffee brewing, and in particular learned for the first time about the existence of espresso.
The manager was delighted with the taste of this drink, and therefore it became the basis of Schultz’s new concept. Having secured the support of local investors, Howard Schultz acquired the Starbucks retail chain in 1987, which by that time had become even more popular among local residents. Today, this company has not lost its popularity, and therefore is engaged in sales of coffee, tea and various treats to the stores of its own retail chain and far beyond its borders.
Then Howard Schultz went to Milan. This to some extent changed his attitude towards his own business. In Milan, Schultz managed to visit famous Italian coffee houses. Inspired by a new idea, the manager came to Seattle and wanted to sell ready-made coffee in single-serve cups. However, this idea did not seem at all acceptable to members of the Starbucks administration, and the company's founders did not support the hired manager.
They thought that by using such a network, Starbucks stores would completely lose their essence. Consumers will be distracted from the main thing and will not make planned purchases. The founders of Starbucks were traditionalists, and therefore had no doubt that real coffee should be prepared at home.
But that didn't stop Schultz. His confidence in his own rightness was so great that he left Starbucks without regret, after which he founded his own coffee shop called II Gionale. This happened in 1985.
Howard's business at his new job went so well that two years later he managed to buy out Starbucks from the founders. Businessmen from Seattle received a substantial reward for abandoning their brainchild, and Schultz was able to be content with absolute freedom of action. By the way, Schultz has now renamed his coffee shop, and it also received the name “Starbucks”.
Almost immediately after the deal was finalized, the first three Starbucks coffee shops opened in Vancouver, Chicago and British Columbia. Then Howard no longer has any doubts, and seven years later his hopes are fully justified. Then there are already more than 165 coffee shops throughout America.
The manager does not stop there, and three years later he opens a coffee shop for the first time outside the American continent - in Tokyo. It is important to note that currently only thirty percent of coffee shops are owned by Starbucks, with the rest being franchised.
Such the highest popularity of Starbucks coffee shops in the world is the indisputable merit of Howard Schultz. His unique ability to quickly respond to changes in the market situation played a huge role here.
He has monitored and timely adjusted to market trends, and like a seer, he can predict what the demand in this area will be in the future. Howard Schultz's achievements include the introduction of standardization at Starbucks. He insisted on constantly improving the quality of customer service at Starbucks coffee shops.
Perhaps the main disadvantage of the Starbucks coffee chain is the high cost of its products. The company is highly susceptible to economic crises of various sizes. However, to this day the company is staying afloat, and there are no serious threats to its existence. Starbucks is one of America's most beloved brands, and as long as that love continues, coffee shops will remain profitable.
From the editor. On June 26, Howard Schultz, who twice headed the famous coffee chain Starbucks as CEO and served as chairman of the board of directors, is leaving the company. Harvard Business Review Editorial Board- Russia” publishes excerpts from Schultz’s book “How Starbucks was Built Cup by Cup” and suggests re-reading several materials from our publication about Starbucks and its legendary leader.
On a cold January morning in 1961, my father broke his ankle at work. I was seven years old at the time, and a snowball fight in the backyard of the school was in full swing when my mother leaned out of the window of our seventh-floor apartment and waved at me. I ran home. “An accident happened to my father,” she said. - I'm going to the hospital.
My father, Fred Schultz, lay at home with his leg in the air for over a month. I had never seen plaster before, so at first it was something strange to me. But the charm of novelty quickly disappeared. Like many of his social brethren, my father was not paid when he was not working. Before the accident, he worked as a truck driver collecting and delivering diapers. For many months he complained bitterly about their smell and dirt, claiming that this work was the worst in the world. But now that he had lost her, apparently he wanted to return.
My mother was seven months pregnant, so she could not work. The family had no income, no insurance, no union compensation - there was nothing to count on. My sister and I ate in silence at the dinner table while my parents argued about who they would have to borrow from and how much money. Sometimes in the evenings the phone would ring, and my mother would insist that I answer the phone. If they called about debts, I had to say that my parents were not at home.
My brother Michael was born in March, they had to borrow again to pay for hospital expenses. Although many years have passed since then, the image of my father - prone on the sofa, with his leg in a cast, unable to work - has not been erased in my memory. Now, looking back, I have deep respect for my father. He didn't graduate from high school, but he was an honest man and wasn't afraid of work. At times he had to work two or three jobs just to have something to put on the table in the evening. He took good care of his children and even played baseball with us on the weekends. He loved the Yankees.
But he was a broken man. He worked from one blue-collar job to another: truck driver, factory worker, taxi driver, but was never able to earn more than $20,000 a year and could never afford to buy his own house. My childhood was spent in the Projects, government-subsidized housing in Canarsie, Brooklyn. As a teenager I realized what a shame it was. As I grew older, I often clashed with my father. I was intolerant of his failures and lack of responsibility. It seemed to me that he could achieve much more if only he tried.
After his death, I realized that I was unfair to him. He tried to become part of the system, but the system crushed him. With low self-esteem, he was unable to get out of the hole and somehow improve his life. The day he died (of lung cancer), in January 1988, was the saddest day of my life. He had no savings or pension. Moreover, being confident in the importance of work, he never once felt satisfaction and pride from the work he performed. As a child, I had no idea that I would one day become the head of a company. But deep down I knew that I would never leave a person “overboard” if it depended on me.
My parents couldn't understand what it was that attracted me to Starbucks. In 1982, I left a well-paying, prestigious job for what was then a small chain of five coffee shops in Seattle. But I saw Starbucks not as it was, but as it could be. She instantly captivated me with her combination of passion and authenticity. Gradually, I realized that if it grew throughout the country, romanticizing the Italian art of espresso and offering freshly roasted coffee beans, it could change the perception of a product that people have known for centuries, and appeal to millions as much as I loved it.
I became CEO of Starbucks in 1987 because I acted as an entrepreneur and convinced investors to believe in my vision for the company. Over the next ten years, by assembling a team of smart and experienced managers, we transformed Starbucks from a local business with six stores and fewer than 100 employees into a national business with 1,300 stores and 25,000 employees. Today we can be found in cities throughout North America, in Tokyo and Singapore. Starbucks has become a recognizable and recognized brand everywhere, allowing us to experiment with innovative products. Profits and sales grew by more than 50% per year for six consecutive years.
But Starbucks is not just a story of growth and success. This is a story about how a company can be built differently. About a company completely different from the ones my father worked for. This is living proof that a company can live by its heart and nurture its spirit - and still make money. This shows that the company is able to provide sustainable returns to shareholders over the long term without sacrificing our core principle of treating employees with respect and dignity, because we have a leadership team that believes this is the right thing to do and because this is the best way to do business. .
Starbucks touches an emotional chord in people's souls. People make a detour to have their morning coffee at our cafe. We have become such a signature symbol of modern American life that the familiar green siren logo is often featured in television shows and feature films. The 1990s brought new words to the American lexicon and new rituals to society. In some areas, Starbucks cafes have become a "third place" - a cozy place for gathering and socializing away from home and work, like an extension of the porch leading to the front door.
People meet at Starbucks because the meaning of our activities is close to them. It's more than great coffee. It's the romance of the coffee experience, the sense of warmth and community that people experience at a Starbucks cafe. Our baristas set the tone: while the espresso is brewing, they talk about the origins of different types of coffee. Some people come to Starbucks with no more experience than my father, and yet they are the ones who create the magic.
If there is one achievement at Starbucks that I am most proud of, it is probably the relationship of trust and confidence between the people who work at the company. This is not an empty phrase. We make sure of this through programs that promote bonding, such as a health program for even part-time employees and stock options that give everyone the opportunity to become part owners of the company. We treat warehouse workers and the most junior salespeople and waiters with the same respect that most companies only show to senior management.
These policies and attitudes are contrary to accepted tradition in the business world. A company focused only on the benefit of shareholders considers its employees to be “consumables,” costs. Executives who actively cut positions are often rewarded with a temporary boost to their stock price. However, in the long term, they not only undermine morale, but sacrifice innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and the sincere dedication of the very people who could take the company to greater heights.
Many business people don't understand that this is not a zero-sum game. Treating your employees favorably should not be considered an additional cost that reduces profits, but a powerful source of energy that can help an enterprise grow to a scale that its leader could not even dream of. Starbucks people are less likely to leave and are proud of where they work. The staff turnover rate in our cafes is more than two times lower than the industry average, which not only saves money, but also strengthens the connection with customers.
But the benefits go even deeper. If people are attached to the company they work for, if they have an emotional connection with it and share its dreams, they will give their hearts to make it better. When employees have self-esteem and self-respect, they can do more for their company, family and the world.
Without any intention on my part, Starbucks became the embodiment of my father's memory.
Since not everyone is able to take fate into their own hands, those in power are responsible to those whose daily work makes the enterprise live; bosses must not only steer in the right direction, but also be sure that no one is left behind...
This is the story of a team of people who built a successful company based on values and guiding principles that are rarely found in corporate America. It talks about how we learned some important business and life lessons. I hope they will help those who are building their own business or realizing their life’s dream.
My ultimate goal... was to instill in people the courage to persevere, following their hearts, even when they are laughed at. Don't let pessimists get you down. Don't be afraid to try, even if the chances are slim. What chance did I have, a boy from a poor neighborhood?
It is possible to build a large company without losing your passion for business and individuality, but this is only possible if everything is aimed not at profit, but at people and values. The key word is heart. I pour my heart into every cup of coffee, and so do my partners at Starbucks. When visitors sense this, they respond in kind.
If you put your heart into the work you do, or into any worthwhile endeavor, you can achieve dreams that others may think are impossible. This is what makes life worth living.
Howard Schultz, “How Starbucks Was Built Cup by Cup” (translated and published in Russian by Alpina Publisher)
From the post of Chairman of the Board of Directors. We remember how a businessman was able to breathe soul into an ordinary coffee shop and turn it into a huge chain of coffee shops.
To bookmarks
Howard Schultz, photo Reuters
Where was he born and studied?
Howard Schultz was born in Brooklyn, into a poor Jewish-American family. They lived in a neighborhood of low-income housing, and their father, a retired military man, constantly changed jobs to feed the family; there was barely enough money. Shultz was surrounded by instability, poverty, lack of prospects and fear of the future.
One of the most powerful episodes of childhood was when my father broke his leg. Lack of health insurance caused enormous financial difficulties in the family. Then Schultz thought about creating a profitable company that would not depend on the “cast on the leg.”
I saw my father lose his self-esteem and self-respect. I am sure that his condition was more due to the fact that he was treated like an ordinary hard worker.
Howard Schultz
First job and transition to Starbucks
At the age of 12, Schultz began delivering newspapers, then selling food in cafes, and at the age of 16 he worked with fur - stretching skins. It brought in virtually no money. According to him, this was good training and strengthened his desire to achieve something in life. In addition, his mother had a good influence on him, talking about outstanding personalities who managed to change their lives.
In 1975, Howard received a bachelor's degree in communications from the University of Michigan and took a job at Xerox. After working in the sales department for three years, he moved to the representative office of the Swedish manufacturer of household appliances Hamamaplast. In sales reports, Schultz discovered large purchases of coffee grinders by a small company, Starbucks in Seattle - much more than from famous coffee shops - and decided to go there.
In Seattle, Schultz met the owners of Starbucks: English teacher Jerry Baldwin, historian Zev Zigal and writer Gordon Bowker. They were united by a love of coffee - the trio knew the intricacies of choosing varieties and preparing the drink and opened a small coffee shop with their own roasted varieties.
They dreamed of instilling in Americans a taste for good coffee. Starbucks was formed on the cult of coffee; all employees had to be able to prepare it correctly and teach customers.
As he handed me a porcelain mug filled with freshly brewed coffee, its steam and aroma seemed to envelop my face. Adding sugar or milk was sacrilege.
Howard Schultz
From the book “How Starbucks was Built Cup by Cup”
However, at the end of the 1960s, people had already abandoned instant coffee, and they were either not used to ground coffee or did not know about it at all, so there were few buyers. It was considered stupid to shell out a lot of money for a semi-finished coffee product that was also unclear how to prepare.
But the approach and enthusiasm of the Starbucks owners impressed Schultz so much that he began asking for a job at the company and throughout the year pestered director Jerry Baldwin with his calls. Schultz explained that Starbucks has great potential and needs to open more stores. But Baldwin was afraid of change and believed that rapid growth would kill the spirit of the company.
Development of Starbucks and departure of Schultz
A year later, Schultz changed his tactics, proposing to “do everything gradually, at the pace familiar to the owners, but create something truly significant.” Assessing the risks, Baldwin appointed Howard director of marketing, offering a salary half that of Hamamaplast. He agreed without hesitation and moved to Seattle. At that time, four Starbucks stores were open.
Despite the efforts, the company grew slowly and settled on a few thousand regular customers. A new look was needed, so in 1983 Schultz went to Milan.
Italian coffee shops were different from American ones: in them people not only drank coffee, but also had a good time at the tables, chatting with friends or working, and the premises did not resemble fast food, which Schultz really liked. The latte and cappuccino recipes he brought helped triple sales and interest customers, but a new idea arose - to create a network of beautiful Italian establishments based on Starbucks.
Howard Schultz
From the book “How Starbucks was Built Cup by Cup”
The conservative owners of Starbucks rejected the idea completely, insisting that their goal was to teach customers how to make coffee. As a result, Schultz quit to open his own chain of coffee shops, II Giornale, taking part of the money from Starbucks and covering the rest with a loan.
If a boss closes his ears to new ideas, he is likely robbing his company of great opportunities.
Howard Schultz
From the book “How Starbucks was Built Cup by Cup”
In his own cafe, he relied on comfort: he added a “coffee to go” service, and live music played inside. On the first day, the cafe was visited by 300 people.
The owners of Starbucks could not cope with the growth: after a year they had to put the stores, roasting shop and brand up for sale. Schultz took out another loan, promising to open 125 coffee shops in five years, and bought the company outright, becoming the sole owner of Starbucks.
Howard Schultz
From the book “How Starbucks was Built Cup by Cup”
Schultz's Starbucks
The first thing Howard did was install a bar counter and hire a barista who remembered customers by name, took into account their tastes and quickly prepared the desired drink. To train baristas, Schultz again traveled to Italy, filming professionals pouring espresso with one hand and whipping cream with the other while interacting with customers.
Starbucks developed aggressively: first, stable income was established through the Mc'Donald's franchising model, then several locations were opened in new states: one belonged to the franchisee, the rest were the property of the company.
Another innovation that Schultz used was self-service. Customers chose the type of drink, its quantity, determined the volume of milk and its fat content - this attracted coffee lovers.
Oasis. In an increasingly diverse society, our coffee shops provide a quiet haven where you can stop for a moment and gather your thoughts. Starbucks employees smile at you, serve you quickly, without annoying you. Going to Starbucks means getting away from the hustle and bustle for a while. We were a breath of fresh air.
Howard Schultz
From the book “How Starbucks was Built Cup by Cup”
Starbucks' active advertising campaign inspired Americans with romanticism, comfort and the intimate atmosphere of coffee shops, and the slogans were memorable and uplifting. The words were confirmed by deeds - Schultz wrote six Starbucks principles that employees must adhere to:
- Provide great jobs and treat each other with respect and dignity.
- Celebrating diversity as an integral component of the path we take in business.
- Apply the highest standards when sourcing, roasting and delivering fresh coffee.
- Work with enthusiasm and delight clients.
- Make a positive contribution to our community and the environment.
- Recognize that profitability is the key to our future success.
Good performance was rewarded with bonuses and company stock, and employees with a 20-hour work week received health insurance. This compensated for the low salary and reduced staff turnover.
Compromises for the sake of people
Schultz tried by any means to increase his audience. The founders of Starbucks sold only dark roast coffee, while Americans love light coffee that they can drink several times a day. Schultz changed his principles and introduced light roasting, which became a great success - the average attendance at Starbucks reached 1000 people.
California Starbucks franchisees have found that coffee shop traffic drops in the summer due to the lack of cold drinks. Howard didn't want to add anything other than coffee to the menu, but it wasn't profitable to lose customers either.