Howard Schultz

I want to pick up the thread on China now that we're sort of into the 2010s. Okay. This decade saw huge, ridiculous growth in China store openings. So there were 500 stores in 2011, right, when you're sort of coming out of that, the rut. By 2017, there were 3,000. Today, there's almost 7,000. And there was a stat that was reported that a new store opened in China every 15 hours in 2017. True.

I want to pick up the thread on China now that we're sort of into the 2010s. Okay. This decade saw huge, ridiculous growth in China store openings. So there were 500 stores in 2011, right, when you're sort of coming out of that, the rut. By 2017, there were 3,000. Today, there's almost 7,000. And there was a stat that was reported that a new store opened in China every 15 hours in 2017. True.

Now bring us to that seed that you planted earlier with Belinda being the single most important employee.

Now bring us to that seed that you planted earlier with Belinda being the single most important employee.

China presented the enormity of opportunity with the significant challenge of pioneering. It's a tea-drinking culture. Tea-drinking culture, no morning business, people eating rice in the morning. We got real estate wrong. We got breakfast wrong. But it was all coming from the control of Seattle.

China presented the enormity of opportunity with the significant challenge of pioneering. It's a tea-drinking culture. Tea-drinking culture, no morning business, people eating rice in the morning. We got real estate wrong. We got breakfast wrong. But it was all coming from the control of Seattle.

Yeah, it was exactly what you see right now. There's no different. But they didn't know. The Chinese people hardly knew what coffee was. There was no morning traffic. And in the early days of our partner, we didn't see eye to eye, so we got them out. When Belinda came along, we had a world-class operator who had succeeded in Singapore and Hong Kong. She's a strong person who believed that Seattle

Yeah, it was exactly what you see right now. There's no different. But they didn't know. The Chinese people hardly knew what coffee was. There was no morning traffic. And in the early days of our partner, we didn't see eye to eye, so we got them out. When Belinda came along, we had a world-class operator who had succeeded in Singapore and Hong Kong. She's a strong person who believed that Seattle

the way we were organized was not a formula for success. You can't have people in Starbucks in Seattle designing the breakfast menu who have never been to China, who think they're going to eat blueberry muffins. And so when she said to me, I will do it if I'm in control of everything. So I want to decentralize China. I report to you, it's you and me,

the way we were organized was not a formula for success. You can't have people in Starbucks in Seattle designing the breakfast menu who have never been to China, who think they're going to eat blueberry muffins. And so when she said to me, I will do it if I'm in control of everything. So I want to decentralize China. I report to you, it's you and me,

And John Culver, who runs International, takes Seattle out of the equation. We were failing. What choice did I have? She turned it. She single-handedly built the China business.

And John Culver, who runs International, takes Seattle out of the equation. We were failing. What choice did I have? She turned it. She single-handedly built the China business.

Today, 18% of Starbucks' revenue is China. Yeah.

Today, 18% of Starbucks' revenue is China. Yeah.

She deserves all the credit. John and I have been to China almost every quarter during the building years of turning it with her. And all the government meetings to tell the Starbucks story. And then we did things in China disruptively.

She deserves all the credit. John and I have been to China almost every quarter during the building years of turning it with her. And all the government meetings to tell the Starbucks story. And then we did things in China disruptively.

Well, Belinda decided that she could go to the government and go to an insurance company and come back to Starbucks and get government approval for Starbucks to do something that had never been done before and provide health insurance to the parents and grandparents of our partners. Cool.

Well, Belinda decided that she could go to the government and go to an insurance company and come back to Starbucks and get government approval for Starbucks to do something that had never been done before and provide health insurance to the parents and grandparents of our partners. Cool.

The Chinese government was so intrigued, sitting down with them saying, can you explain why do you want to do this?

The Chinese government was so intrigued, sitting down with them saying, can you explain why do you want to do this?