Howard Schultz

I don't think people knew what I was even doing. I mean, I think maybe a few people, you know, I just had the thought, we got to put this in a bottle.

I don't think people knew what I was even doing. I mean, I think maybe a few people, you know, I just had the thought, we got to put this in a bottle.

We have to put this in a bottle. And this product, if I'm remembering right, was so successful, the instant that it hit store shelves, you had to pull it all off because you needed to create new manufacturing processes and spin up new factories in order to make enough to actually satisfy demand.

We have to put this in a bottle. And this product, if I'm remembering right, was so successful, the instant that it hit store shelves, you had to pull it all off because you needed to create new manufacturing processes and spin up new factories in order to make enough to actually satisfy demand.

Basically correct. And we also, early on, had a recall where they found glass in the bottle. And Pepsi, to its credit, took all the blame for that and fixed it. But yeah, it was from minute one, the power of Starbucks and Bottle Frappuccino and doing something we had never, no one, it was no bottled coffee, let alone.

Basically correct. And we also, early on, had a recall where they found glass in the bottle. And Pepsi, to its credit, took all the blame for that and fixed it. But yeah, it was from minute one, the power of Starbucks and Bottle Frappuccino and doing something we had never, no one, it was no bottled coffee, let alone.

And again, just like the Costco story and the United Airlines story, the flywheel of the awareness of, and people drinking something they can enjoy at home or at work. Again, it just created another level of velocity on the brand.

And again, just like the Costco story and the United Airlines story, the flywheel of the awareness of, and people drinking something they can enjoy at home or at work. Again, it just created another level of velocity on the brand.

I mean, I'm just thinking about between the cups, but then United Airlines and Costco and the CPG products, there's gotta have been like 50 billion Starbucks logos printed. I'm sure that was maybe more. I'm sure I could estimate it better.

I mean, I'm just thinking about between the cups, but then United Airlines and Costco and the CPG products, there's gotta have been like 50 billion Starbucks logos printed. I'm sure that was maybe more. I'm sure I could estimate it better.

But you can see where the size of the equity of the brand was much bigger than the size of the company, much bigger. Right, because at this point, you were like 800 stores. Yeah, but then something else happened. And that is we wake up one day and someone says, Starbucks is in a movie. And we said, what movie? You've got mail. That wasn't coordinated?

But you can see where the size of the equity of the brand was much bigger than the size of the company, much bigger. Right, because at this point, you were like 800 stores. Yeah, but then something else happened. And that is we wake up one day and someone says, Starbucks is in a movie. And we said, what movie? You've got mail. That wasn't coordinated?

First of all, Starbucks never paid for placement. Someone must have approved it. I knew nothing about it. And then someone said, you got to see this movie, Starbucks all over it. I said, what movie? Tom Hanks, You've Got Mail with Meg Ryan. I knew nothing about it. It was just another thing where it was just like a little fairy dust on the brand.

First of all, Starbucks never paid for placement. Someone must have approved it. I knew nothing about it. And then someone said, you got to see this movie, Starbucks all over it. I said, what movie? Tom Hanks, You've Got Mail with Meg Ryan. I knew nothing about it. It was just another thing where it was just like a little fairy dust on the brand.

We were so in the mud. It was so in it that we didn't have time to look up. And we were just running so fast, so hard. When you're growing at this pace, it's almost virtually impossible to catch the growth in terms of the infrastructure.

We were so in the mud. It was so in it that we didn't have time to look up. And we were just running so fast, so hard. When you're growing at this pace, it's almost virtually impossible to catch the growth in terms of the infrastructure.

And so you're constantly back and forth trying to create that fragile balance between the seductive nature and the intoxication of growth and success and the foundation necessary to support it and not falling too far behind where you lose it. But you never are in a position, at least we were never in a position, we were ahead of it, never.

And so you're constantly back and forth trying to create that fragile balance between the seductive nature and the intoxication of growth and success and the foundation necessary to support it and not falling too far behind where you lose it. But you never are in a position, at least we were never in a position, we were ahead of it, never.

And so there was a constant push, and I think this is where Oren was the wise man in the room to say, Howard, we just can't do that now. We don't have the infrastructure, we don't have the people, we don't have the systems. And I'd be screaming, we gotta do it. If we don't do it, someone else is gonna do it, we gotta do it. And that takes us to international. We weren't ready for that.

And so there was a constant push, and I think this is where Oren was the wise man in the room to say, Howard, we just can't do that now. We don't have the infrastructure, we don't have the people, we don't have the systems. And I'd be screaming, we gotta do it. If we don't do it, someone else is gonna do it, we gotta do it. And that takes us to international. We weren't ready for that.