Driving Innovation and Growth at Starbucks: From Howard Schultz to Kevin Johnson Success

Starbucks, an American food and beverage company, was founded in 1971 by three partners, Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Zev Siegl, to sell premium coffee beans and specialty coffee equipment. Schultz, who was later to become CEO of Starbucks, first visited a Starbucks store in 1981 and became intrigued with the Starbucks operation. A year later, he joined the company as manager of retail sales and marketing. Fascinated by the passionate coffee culture of Italy, he suggested to the founders that they create such an espresso bar atmosphere in the US. But, when they turned down his proposal, Schultz decided to leave the company and start his own coffee bar – II Giornale – in Seattle. In 1987, he purchased Starbucks with the support of local investors and he rebranded his II Giornale coffee outlets as Starbucks Corporation...