Howard Schultz (Starbucks’ CEO) has written two books: Pour Your Heart Into It and Onward.
From reading/skimming through the books, here’s my take on why Starbucks is successful.
Starbucks’ competitive advantage
It is clear that Schultz is downright obsessive about quality. Schultz has traveled the world and knew that other countries were doing coffee far better than the US when he got into the business.
- The product. Schultz has always insisted on using the highest quality beans and never sacrificing quality by using slightly inferior beans. Starbucks invests a lot of money into figuring out how to deliver the best product. They have in-house employees to source the best beans from around the world, develop the best roasting methods, and to develop the best blends.
- Theatre. Preparing the coffee is like a sacred ritual. The care and craftsmanship in producing each cup of coffee adds to the experience.
- People. Starbucks pays attention to the human interaction between the barista and the customer. Schultz hated espresso machines that were too tall since the barista couldn’t make eye contact with the customer while preparing the drink. He also works towards having baristas that know their customers.
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