Starbucks’ Three Year Strategic Plan Essay

(3a): What trade-offs has Starbucks made? What different activity choices has it made from its rivals?

Starbucks was bought out by current CEO Howard Schultz in 1987. Since then, Andrew Harrer (2012) reports the company has grown to operate over “17,244 stores worldwide” (para. 1). Fortune (n.d.) reports in its yearly 100 Best Companies to Work for that Starbucks employs “some 95,000 employees”. From only a handful of stores in 1987 to a billion dollar franchise today, the success of Starbucks is due in great deal to their corporate culture, specifically how employees, or as Starbucks calls them, partners are treated. Joseph Michelli (2007) echoes this sentiment, “A great cup of coffee is only part of the Starbucks success equation” (p. 767).

Our mission: to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time. Starbucks has lived up to that motto each and every year and with such great numbers and great feedback the company keeps on growing in the right direction. Starbucks is well known around the world for delivering fast, efficient coffee in all forms. From their frappachino’s, to their brew coffee and ice tea they are definitely the set example that other company’s in their area follow. They live by six principles that they practice each and every day they represent there coffee which has always been there passion to deliver

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

Starbucks Corporation is an American global coffee company and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 20,366 stores in 61 countries, including 13,123 in the United States, 1,299 in Canada, 977 in Japan, 793 in the United Kingdom, 732 in China, 473 in South Korea, 363 in Mexico, 282 in Taiwan, 204 in the Philippines, 164 in Thailand and 3 in India.

Former Starbucks Executive Scott Bedbury once said “Brands need to communicate that they are along for the ride. They are made of flesh and emotion. That they are made possible by people” (10 Quotes from Starbucks Executives, 2010, para. 6). Starbucks’ beliefs in customer service, community solitude, and a strong business core stretch far behind just a belief in a quality caffeinated product. “We make sure everything we do honors that connection – from our commitment to the highest quality coffee in the world, to the way we engage with our customers and communities to do business responsibly” (About Us, 2011, para. 4). Thus, this commitment is the motivation behind Marketing Team A’s proposed

Starbucks advertises two essential mission statements. First and foremost, it strives to “establish [ourselves] as the premier purveyor of the finest coffee in the world while maintaining our uncompromising principles while [we] grow(s).” (Starbucks) Reflective of its mission, Starbucks bases its strategic campaign and communications on six indispensable philosophies; structuring a pleasant work environment in which employees are treated with “respect and dignity,” incorporating diversity in all business aspects, purchasing, roasting and delivering fresh coffee, retaining satisfied customers, giving back to the community and environment, and developing

Starbucks’ lead in the specialty coffee industry exemplifies the result of deftly executing a well-planned business strategy. Moreover, Starbucks is well positioned for what is expected to be a continuing rise in the popularity of specialty coffee products. The question before Starbucks’ leadership, however, is what avenues will lead to Starbucks’ goal of remaining true to its core, the highest quality coffee products while providing a “total coffee experience” for its customers?

According to Gulati, Huffman, and Neilson (2002), Starbucks proves relationships is an important asset for growth. Starbucks is a relationship-centric organization which relationship is act as a core asset of the firm. This asset is called “relational capital”, which indicates the value of a firm’s network of relationship with stakeholders such as customers, suppliers, alliance partners, and employees. Alliances Starbucks had made with its partners are one of the main cause Starbucks has become well-known brand and coffee leading company in the world.

1.Analyze the business-level strategies for the corporation you chose to determine the business-level strategy you think is most important to the long-term success of the firm and whether or not you judge this to be a good choice. Justify your opinion.

One company that has been particularly successful in creating an overall company image in my option has been Starbucks. They have been able to maintain a dominant position in today’s market. Where in the morning most of our society needs a good cup of coffee in order to start their day. At one point, we looked at Starbucks as a high-end marketer. A sort of club to belong to. However, things managed to change in the recent years where a 4.00 cup of coffee was becoming a luxury items. This became known as the Coffee Wars. Starbuck had to now face competition from the fast food world. Which was McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts. They started to look at this market as an opening to gain more customers. They started to offer their

They are a member of the fair trade and provides the farmers premium price. As they value the premium quality of the products, they also pay premium price for the coffee beans. They increased the payment of coffee from $1.28 to $1.42 per pound in 2005. They increased the payment so they the farmers and suppliers can increase the quality of the coffee beans. This motivates them and makes them as a part of the Starbucks family. The family culture of the company makes them care for the products they supply to the stores. Starbucks’ mission statement is- “To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.”. This reflects their strategy which is to reach their aim by paying attention to the employees and its customers. As Starbucks is very focused on the value of the products and not really the money, this improves the relationship between employees. Employees are called partners which indicates the employees are highly valued. They are given a sense of belonging. they have opportunity to become even a shareholder of the

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 first opened its doors in Seattle’s Pike Place Market with the name being coined from that of Moby Dick’s first mate (Schultz & Yang 1999). It has spread its shops across North America, all over Europe, the Middle East, Latin America as well as the Pacific Rim with an estimated 35 million customer weekly (Michelli, 2008). With tremendous growth from a small time coffee shop, the company has matured to an international icon that today it is one of the world’s leading retailer, roaster and brand specialty coffee (Story, 1971). The company offers whole bean coffees, espresso beverages, and confectionery and bakery items.

Corporate Strategy fundamentally is concerned with the selection of businesses in which the company should compete and with the development and coordination of that portfolio of business.[1] In the case of Starbucks the corporate strategy they have implemented is unique to their industry which has allowed them to differentiate from their competitors and is summarized best by Howard Schultz CEO of Starbucks, “We’re in the people business serving coffee,[2]” high quality specialty coffee and related products in a European café environment. It is clear Starbucks is in a growth strategy utilizing three key techniques that support its Mission, “to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and