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Conversations From the Corner Office
COMPANY HISTORY
Starbucks Corp.
Starbucks began in Seattle in 1981 as a seller of coffee beans and coffee equipment.
Things really began to change in 1987, when Howard Shultz — the director of operations and marketing at the time — took over the company and convinced investors the future lay in selling coffee drinks. Resistance was high, but eventually he prevailed. The rest, as they say, is history.
In 1991, Starbucks became the first privately-owned company to offer employees stock options. The following year, Starbucks went public. Adjusting for stock splits, those initial shares were worth less than 73 cents a pop, with a total market capitalization of $250 million. Today, the company trades at more than $36 a share, with a market cap of more than $27 billion.
In 1996, Starbucks went global. Its first location outside of North America was in Tokyo. Today the company is all over the world, including China, though interestingly, not Italy (the country that inspired Schultz's love of coffee). Today there are more than 11,000 locations around the world, with an estimated 40 million customers a week. Currently, the chain is opening roughly six stores and hiring 300 new employees every day.
Starbucks is trying to spread its reach into mass culture. The coffee retailer now sells Starbucks branded CDs and owns Hear music. In 2006, the company entered the movie market as one of the producers behind the film, "Akeelah and the Bee."
RELATED LINKS
CHAIRMAN HOWARD SCHULTZ
Audio: How did Starbucks get its name?
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