Free Download - By Starbucks Starbucks Name: Email:

The Starbucks Company appears to be in a bid to take over the world. At least, that’s what it seems like as this corporate giant edges closer and closer to its goal of having over 20,000 stores around the world in just a few more years. What is the secret to the rapid expansion of the Starbucks Company on an advertising budget that company executives readily acknowledge as a ‘joke’?

The Starbucks Company has capitalized on its primary customer – the lazy coffee drinker. Yes, the Starbucks Company has oriented its entire growth strategy with this one person in mind. It’s not because of the lazy chairs that find themselves in every location, nor is it because of the relaxing music playing through the stores’ speakers that can make you forget about time.

Rather, one look around downtown Seattle, Washington and the reason for calling the Starbucks Company a company for the lazy coffee drinker becomes evident. Starbucks has engaged in an expansion process many analysts have since come to label ‘self-cannibalism’. In downtown Seattle, the birthplace of Howard Schultz’s Starbucks Company, there are two Starbucks at the City Centre, two at the nearby Pacific Place, and eleven others within walking distance.

In total, the Starbucks Company has opened almost 40 stores in the “downtown core” of Seattle, and 90 throughout the rest of the city. And, the Starbucks Company expansion plan doesn’t stop once you reach the outskirts of urban areas. Suburban areas are becoming just as popular locations for Starbucks coffee shops. Starbucks Company CEO Howard Schultz doesn’t care if one or more of stores are right across the street from each other. In fact, that’s precisely what he wants.

It is one of the greatest ironies lying behind the success of the Starbucks Company that despite having built its success upon a foundation and image of being chic and catering to the busy urbanite, the Starbucks Company is actually a company based on the idea of catering to the lazy man. And, they’re the first ones to admit it.

“Starbucks builds stores where customers want us to be,” says Starbucks Company spokesperson Audrey Lincoff. “Because we are part of our customers’ daily routine, often crossing a street could interrupt that routine.”

The Starbucks Company is proud of its ability to meet the lazy coffee drinker’s needs and that’s exactly what it plans on doing for the next ten years as well. In its annual report to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Starbucks Company claims that their objective is “to establish Starbucks as the most recognized and respected brand in the world. To achieve this goal, the Company plans to continue rapid expansion of its retail operations, grow its Specialty Operations, and selectively pursue other opportunities to leverage the Starbucks brand.”

To achieve its lofty goals, the Starbucks Company still has a ways to go; it has cornered just seven percent of the overall coffee market thus far. Nevertheless, so long as it continues to meet the needs of the lazy coffee drinker without disappointment, chances are the Starbucks Company will one day reach its objectives.

Did you find value here? Please share!

Tweet

Comments - Please leave a comment below!

Recommended content for you

Anne Barr Anne Barr has over 27 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website

Jay Kubassek (Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek)   In six short years, Canadian entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from working on a farm to selling mufflers at a Kansas City Midas shop to revolutionizing home-based entrepreneurialism with the 2004 launch of his Internet-based education company CarbonCopyPRO and the PRO family of companies. With little more than an 8th grade education and no start-up capital, the odds were stacked against him. But Jay has proven that business success and financial freedom can be achieved by virtually anyone who wants it badly enough, provided they are willing to earn it and the entrepreneurial spark is still there. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website

Canada Mortgage Marcus Arkan currently serves as the President/Principle Broker of a Canada Mortgage brokerage called Syndicate Mortgages Inc. After working with a number of Canada's top financial institutions, the experience and knowledge he gained throughout his professional career combined with his drive and entrepreneurial spirit led him to develop his own company. The operation began in 2003 in the basement of his home and now has flourished into a successful corporation with a head office in one of Metropolitan Toronto's busiest sectors and 10 branch locations employing over 100 mortgage professionals. His organization is now one of Ontario's leading mortgage brokerages specializing in residential, commercial, and construction financing. He holds the designation of Accredited Mortgage Professional from the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals. This allows him to differentiate himself from other mortgage originators and demonstrates his commitment to the highest standards of industry performance and help to achieve the best mortgage rates Canada for Canadian consumers. For more information on Mr. Arkan and his Syndicate Mortgages Inc., please visit www.syndicatemortgages.com. - Visit Canada Mortgage's Website

To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us.