Introduction
Starbucks is a retail coffee company founded in 1971 by Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Ziv Siegl with the intent to sell the finest quality coffee (whole bean and ground) (Hoover’s, 2015). In 1982, after expanding from one to five retail stores, a fifth team member (Howard Schultz) was brought on to manage marketing and sales (Hoover’s, 2015). Schultz introduced the idea of a coffee bar, and opened Starbucks’ first coffee bar in downtown Seattle in 1984 (Hoover’s, 2015). In 1987, Howard Schulz became president and CEO (Hoover’s, 2015). Expansion efforts during the 1990’s Continue reading...