There may not actually be one on every street corner but with more than 28,000 stores across the globe, Starbucks is a universally recognised brand.
The first Starbucks opened in 1971 and it has evolved to cover three operating regions – the Americas, EMEA and Asia. In 1998, Starbucks entered Europe through its acquisition of 65 Seattle Coffee Company stores in the UK, where it now operates a franchise and licensing model.
Built on the concept of providing “a third place between work and home”, the roaster and retailer of specialty coffee prides itself on celebrating coffee and its rich tradition, and also offering its customers a sense of connection.
It aims to forge enduring relationships with customers and has been innovative in its approach.
Beyond the Starbucks app and digitally supported My Starbucks Rewards loyalty scheme, the retailer has launched new store concepts. For instance, its first coffee house in Italy opened in Milan boasting a mezzanine cocktail bar, a heated marble-topped coffee counter and an on-site roastery.
Martin Brok, EMEA president at Starbucks speaks at Tech. 2018 about how the business has used tech to transform how its customers buy coffee.
Tech. – the two-day festival of digital retailing and the technology driving it – returns this September. We take a peak at the speakers you need to watch.
Opened at the end of February, the new-look Starbucks Reserve store, in its home city of Seattle, shows the lengths that purveyors of warm beverages are prepared to go to in order to create ‘premium’ experiences for their customers.
As retailers restructure amid harsh trading conditions and changing shopping habits, a legal judgement in the US may carry implications on this side of the pond.
Holland & Barrett has snapped up Starbucks’ vice-president of technology Mark Fabes for its newly-created chief information officer role, Retail Week can reveal.
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