Starbucks: A business model for success now and in the future

As the world’s number one specialty coffee retailer, Starbucks sells coffee drinks, food items, coffee beans, and coffee-related accessories and equipment. In addition, Starbucks sells whole-bean coffees through a specialty sales group and grocery stores. Starbucks has grown beyond coffee into related businesses such as coffee-flavoured ice cream and ready-to-drink coffee beverages. The purpose of this paper is to analyze Starbucks business strategy, customer value proposition, company’s operations and the risks to financial results and reporting in the short term.

Jerry Baldwin, Gordon Bowker, and Zev Siegl founded Starbucks in 1971 in Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington. They were inspired to pursue this company by coffee roasting entrepreneur Alfred Peet after he taught them his style of roasting beans. Since then, Starbucks has grown into the largest coffee chain in the world, with over 23,000 locations worldwide.

Starbucks was bought out by current CEO Howard Schultz in 1987. Since then, Andrew Harrer (2012) reports the company has grown to operate over “17,244 stores worldwide” (para. 1). Fortune (n.d.) reports in its yearly 100 Best Companies to Work for that Starbucks employs “some 95,000 employees”. From only a handful of stores in 1987 to a billion dollar franchise today, the success of Starbucks is due in great deal to their corporate culture, specifically how employees, or as Starbucks calls them, partners are treated. Joseph Michelli (2007) echoes this sentiment, “A great cup of coffee is only part of the Starbucks success equation” (p. 767).

starbucks Corp., an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington, has expanded rapidly since its opening in 1971. These outrageous success was due to its well-developed strategy vision which lay out the company's strategic course in developing and strengthening its business. Starbucks is a global corporation that sells authentic coffee in 30 countries, reporting revenues of nearly $5.1 billion in 2006. The main goal of Starbucks is to embrace diversity by applying the highest standards of excellence. Starbucks strives to perfect the relationship with the working class by making the service as fast as possible because they believe that every customer has their own personal rate. One

Several key success factors exist for Starbucks, a leader in the coffee industry. They include

Howard Schultz is not the only Howard to have a significant influence on Starbuck’s success. Howard Behar, the former president of Starbucks North America and Starbucks International always stressed the importance of people over profits. Behar worked at Starbucks from 1989- 2007, coaching hundreds of leaders to help the company grown into the coffee power-house it is today (Behar, 2014). Behar’s leadership approach at Starbucks was extremely people-centered, and the company held onto that philosophy after he retired. One of Behar’s famous quotes, “We’re in the people business serving coffee, not the coffee business serving people,” shows his true feelings and passion for the customer (Stallard, 2011). Behar is still loved and respected at Starbucks for his heart and passion as well as his work ethic, open-mindedness, and judgment about the world of business (Stallard, 2011). Howard Behar may not be in the coffee business anymore, but he passed on many of his beliefs and passions to Howard Schultz, current CEO of Starbucks,

This drives the demand of the product , shifting the demand curve to right. Buyers expectation strongly affects the consumption . Expectation of technology for a consumer , wifi, card, mobile , e-commerce adds up to the demand. With increase in technology by the company the demand increases leading the demand curve to move to right. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/rahimkanani/2012/05/24/chief-digital-officer-for-starbucks-on-technology-change-and-community/)

The context change in form that Starbucks found itself competing with smaller chains that resembled its former pre-expansion model with competitors focusing in creating symbolic-expressive value and fast food restaurants that had started to offer specialty coffee with more aggressive advertisement at a lower cost. The competitive context changed for Starbucks because it’s focus in mass distribution channels and its retail footprint strategy stated its product within a standard performance product value; this affected the value perception of the product.

Millions of people enjoy refreshing cups of coffee regularly served from Starbucks outlets worldwide. The company commands a large following and is a preferred brand of choice for myriad individuals globally. The business runs successful regional outlets through engaging exemplary customer relationship models in managing customer relations and brand image. At Starbucks, there is an upbeat enabling environment that incorporates helpful and friendly staff who are well trained in handling customer needs, concerns or problems with their coffee or services. According to Michelli (2007), the current company structure is founded upon various business models that support the continuous management of company principles and enable elaborate organizational structure. Starbucks’ Vision Statement is to become America’s “Third Place” of choice to complement work and home. In addition, its goal is to establish the company as “the most recognized and respected brand in the world.” Moreover, it surges its marketing objective in commodities which significantly include coffee, service and the atmosphere (Meyer and Schwager, 2007).

Starbucks have played various roles over the last years to become the global contributor that added value to the society. The Company implemented a strategy of expanding its stores. It developed a geographical expansion of a three year strategy that targeted the areas that had favorable demographic profiles with the company's operation infrastructure. Its selection of the targeted region which served as a hub supported the goal of opening more stores. The Company oversaw the expansion process by creating zones that directed development for each region to implant its culture by opening new stores. The store launched grew steadily and more successful and in 1995 there were about 17,000 stores that fully served his customers (McGraw-Hill Companies, 1999).

The team sought out true customer needs through “My Starbucks Ideas”, which is a link on the Starbucks website for consumers to propose ideas to the corporation, from product involvement to experience ideas. We found an overwhelming amount of input for gluten free and healthier food options. The most important target customer factors that the team decided to take action on are people’s dietary restrictions and lifestyle choices. These two ideas directed our choices to present gluten-free options in the four most popular pastries and highly nourishing smoothie bowls, all of which are less than 300 calories.

Once Howard Schultz led the Starbucks and became the CEO of it, the organization was changed and re-designed to be among the best brands in the US market. He finds himself able to oversee and save the organization from its troublesome position into aggressive coffee around US. To achieve this success, it’s not one day work, it’s need hard work and with a specific end goal to finish such huge pivot. Mr. Howard Schultz believed that all issues and difficulties need a supportable solution in order to handle those challenges ahead of Starbucks. Based on the realities that happened in the case study following are some of the significant efforts that Mr. Howard Schultz did which made a huge change in the entire organization.

Starbucks is an organization I am familiar with because I worked for them. Starbucks started as a small coffee company in the United States selling bulk coffee. They have grown to an international coffee house that serves one custom cup of coffee at a time in an atmosphere that provides spaces for collaboration or alone time. It has become an entertainment designation between customer’s home and work. The company inspires to have a successful globalization impact. Starbucks works to incorporate technology into the heart of its company, resulting in increased cash flow. It strives to be a leader in its industry; it is economic strong, it continues to break barriers to bring products to market, and it continues to diversify its

Customer satisfaction is a key component to any successful business, especially one in the coffee industry. Starbucks started as a small coffee shop in Seattle in 1971. Howard Schultz, the chairman and chief global strategist, joined the marketing team in 1982 with a vision—a vision to capture “the live coffee mantra.”[1] Until the early 2000s, before Starbucks took off, there were limited places for people to socialize outside of work and home. When Starbucks infiltrated the market as a “third place”, it found sudden success. In 2002, Starbucks was the dominant specialty-coffee brand in North

Starbucks is viewed as one of the world’s most valuable brands and creates a product experience beyond coffee. Taking coffee into a multinational revolution has led to their success. This all started in Seattle’s Pike Place Market back in 1971. The name of the company was derived from the famous American classic novel Moby-Dick. Starbuck was the 30 year old chief mate in the story. In the early 90’s, Starbucks expanded outside of Seattle and then international at an exponential rate. Today there are over 21,000 Starbucks coffeehouses in the world.