Starbucks Case Study Essay

In this technique, internal strengths and weaknesses of a company and external opportunities and threats faced by it are closely examined to chart a marketing strategy for the future (Forsyth, 2010, pp. 102-106). Major strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of Starbucks are analyzed below.

Starbucks has created a competitive advantage with their product quality by setting themselves apart from their competitors. “The Company has stayed with the upper-scale of the coffee market, competing on comfort rather than convenience, which is the case with its closest competitors, McDonald’s and Dunkin Donuts” (Mourdoukoutas, Panos). Consumers believe they are receiving a better product and experience when they purchase from a Starbucks as opposed to another large food service company that may sell coffee.

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

1. In the beginning, how was Starbucks different from other coffee options for coffee drinkers in the United States? What activities and assets did Starbucks leverage to differentiate itself from competitors?

4. The strategies that Starbucks is undertaking will be compared with the initiatives that Nadler and Tushman have outlined.

The original idea for the Starbucks format came from the 1980´s when the company´s director if marketing, Howard Schultz, came back from a trip to Italy enchanted with the Italian coffeehouse experience, the idea was to sell the company´s own premium roasted coffee and freshly brewed espresso-style coffee beverages, along with a variety of pastries, coffee accessories, teas, and other products in a tastefully designed coffeehouse setting. The focus was to sell a “third place experience”.

In 1971, Starbucks started as a small coffee shop which targeted a specialized market of coffee purists. Howard Schultz, who later owned the company and initiated the high growth period, joined Starbucks’ marketing team in 1982. Main concept of Schultz marketing strategy was too make Starbucks “America’s third place” considering home and work the two other places where Americans spend most of their time. In 1992, Schultz acquired Starbucks and made an initial public offering. Despite Wall Street’s doubts about the IPO, $25 million was raised by Starbucks.

I've chosen the Starbucks Corporation on which to do my case assignment for the session. I first became interested in Starbucks while working on a paper for a previous marketing class. I became intrigued at the entrepreneurial spirit that such a large corporation had managed to maintain throughout its massive expansion. Starbucks corporation, unlike many of its now-defunct rivals, has done an outstanding job since its meager beginnings in 1970 with the execution of its strategic process; resulting in it currently owning 40% of the specialty coffee market and boosting annual sales exceeding $7 billion according to Burt Helm. Historic successes and recent turmoil within the company, including a near 40% decline in 2007 in profits (Sullivan

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.

Thus, it is evident that the Starbucks is well positioned around its strengths, which far outweighs its weaknesses. The company must maintain its supplier relationships, and continue to offer compelling and premium products to its customer base in order to stay relevant and compete against other coffee giants.

The main advantage that Starbucks has over other companies in the industry is that they are able to retain their financial stability. They can take their resources and use them to retrench their global strategy. It is imperative they stay solvent to keep afloat and expand in more areas. The European market is the one they should concentrate on now and bring it to its full potential. They will be able to get a stronger more loyal customer base in this way. They need to develop a stronger strategic plan because the market is different in Europe than in the states. Starbucks will be able to move forward after this evaluation process and be more effective in all areas of management.

Starbuck’s strategy focused on three components; high-quality coffee, intimate service, and ambient atmosphere. Starbucks worked closely with growers in Africa, South and Central America, and Asia-Pacific regions to insure the quality of its product. Starbucks called all employees' "partners" and worked hard to train them with the skills necessary to best serve the customer. The atmosphere at Starbucks was crafted after the European-style espresso bar. The company goal was to create ambience through the Starbucks "experience" and by making the area comfortable, yet upscale.

Starbucks needs to evaluate the best in it is production and services. It also needs to look at it is assets compared to the competitors and if they are worthy their capability.

Dunkin’ Donuts is a global company dealing in coffeehouses and donuts that has its roots in the USA. It was founded by William Rosenberg in the year 1950 in the locality of Quincy in Massachusetts. It is currently based in Canton in Massachusetts. The company is a very relatable success story since it has been able to grow over the years and becoming one of the greatest and most loved stop for coffee and baked goods. Furthermore, it has over 12,000 outlets in 36 countries across the world. The donuts company most common chain of products are bagels, coffee, donuts and a variety of both iced and hot beverages. The primary competitor for this company is Starbucks followed by the Honey Dew Donuts Company (Rangaswamy, 2007). This essay is going to discuss into detail the effects of globalization and technology on Dunkin’ Donuts, determine how the company could earn above-average returns using industrial organization and resource-based models, the impact of mission and vision statements and lastly, how all types of stakeholders affect the company’s performance.

These days Starbucks owns more than 18,000 stores in 62 countries and is the premier roaster and retailer of exclusive coffee in the world. Back in 1971, when the first Starbucks opened, the company already had two intentions to give to people every single day till now: share specialty coffee with friends and help to make the world a little better.