Starbucks

Jerry Baldwin, Gordon Bowker and Zev Siegl founded Starbucks in Seattle. Its original Pike Place Market store sold coffee beans, tea and spices, preceding the later coffeehouse model centered on prepared espresso drinks.⁠[1][2]

Howard Schultz joined to lead retail operations and marketing. A 1983 visit to Italy exposed him to its coffeehouse culture.⁠[3][4]

Schultz left Starbucks to establish Il Giornale, developing Italian-style coffeehouses. Starbucks became an early investor and coffee supplier.⁠[5]

Schultz raised $3.8 million to acquire the Starbucks name, roasting plant and six Seattle stores, adopting Starbucks as the combined brand. His subsequent expansion followed the business established by its three original founders.⁠[5]

The company offered health benefits to eligible full- and part-time employees in 1988 and introduced a stock-option program including part-time staff in 1991.⁠[3]

Starbucks completed an initial public offering and traded on Nasdaq under SBUX.⁠[3]

The company introduced Frappuccino blended beverages, expanding its cold-drink range.⁠[3]

Starbucks opened its first Japanese store in Tokyo, expanding beyond North America.⁠[6]

Starbucks opened its first Beijing store, beginning operations in mainland China.⁠[6]

The company introduced Starbucks Card in 2001 and iPhone applications and a mobile-payment test in 2009.⁠[3]

Nestlé obtained perpetual global marketing rights for specified Starbucks packaged consumer and foodservice products outside Starbucks coffeehouses. The agreement excluded ready-to-drink products and in-store sales and did not constitute an acquisition of Starbucks Corporation.⁠[7]

The NLRB reported a 19–8 vote at Buffalo’s Elmwood store in favor of representation by Workers United. The representation vote did not establish that a collective bargaining agreement had been signed.⁠[8]

Brian Niccol became chairman and CEO and subsequently pursued the Back to Starbucks program, emphasizing coffee preparation, the store experience and customer connection.⁠[9]

Starbucks introduced Green Dot Assist, a generative-AI assistant piloted in 35 coffeehouses. Baristas could ask work-related questions, including drink recipes, conversationally on iPads. The announcement concerned a test of an employee support tool.⁠[10]

The company reported 627 restructuring-related closures in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, more than 90% in North America. This closure count differs from the net change after openings.⁠[11]

For fiscal 2025, ended September 28, revenue was approximately $37.2 billion, up 3%. Global comparable sales declined 1%, and GAAP earnings per share were $1.63.⁠[11]

Regulatory filings date completion of the Boyu China transaction to March 30; it was announced on April 2. Boyu held 60% of the venture, while Starbucks retained 40% and its brand intellectual property. Some 7,991 stores became licensed locations, and the business was deconsolidated.⁠[12][13]

For the quarter ended June 28, revenue was $9.3227 billion, down 1.4%, while global comparable sales rose 7.9%. Starbucks ended the quarter with 41,304 stores, approximately 33% company-operated and 67% licensed. China’s deconsolidation affected revenue comparisons, making consolidated revenue and comparable sales distinct measures.⁠[14]

Starbucks announced plans to close about 250 North American stores, citing financial performance and customer experience. The announcement described action planned for that week, rather than each location’s closure date. AP separately reported that the company and union had still not reached their first collective agreement.⁠[15][16]

Starbucks is a publicly traded coffee company headquartered in Seattle. It combines company-operated and licensed coffeehouses selling coffee, other beverages and food with packaged-product partnerships. Its name draws on Moby-Dick, and its emblem depicts a twin-tailed siren.⁠[17][14][7][4]

Website: https://www.starbucks.com/ (opens in a new window); X: https://x.com/Starbucks (opens in a new window); YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: https://www.youtube.com/@starbucks (opens in a new window); LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: https://www.linkedin.com/company/starbucks/ (opens in a new window).⁠[4][18][19][17]