Americans reading the paper, listening to the news every single day, and all you hear is things are getting worse and worse. And that has a psychological effect on consumer confidence. That’s what consumer confidence is. – Howard Schultz
When you’re surrounded by people who share a passionate commitment around a common purpose, anything is possible. – Howard Schultz
Post-9/11, we saw an immediate uptick in the amount of people in our stores, all over the country. People wanted that human connection. We are not going to fracture the Starbucks experience. – Howard Schultz
If Vancouver did not succeed as Starbucks from ’87 on, our entire international business, which is now thousands of stores and a significant amount of growth and profit, may not have existed. – Howard Schultz
I’ve traveled around the world, and what’s so revealing is that, despite the differences in culture, politics, language, how people dress, there is a universal feeling that we all want the same thing. We deeply want to be respected and appreciated for our differences. – Howard Schultz
Certainly the caffeine in coffee, whether it’s Starbucks or generic coffee, is somewhat of a stimulant. But if you drink it in moderation, which I think four or five cups a day is, you’re fine. – Howard Schultz
I think people will walk into the Starbucks store and overnight recognize the significant difference between what Starbucks represents day-in and day-out and all the other coffee companies that have been serving coffee in India for so many years. – Howard Schultz
It’s ironic that no matter where I go, I meet people from Brooklyn. I’m proud of that heritage. It’s where I’m from, who I am. – Howard Schultz
I never wanted to be on any billionaires list. I never define myself by net worth. I always try to define myself by my values. – Howard Schultz
When you’re building a business or joining a company, you have to be transparent; you can’t have two sets of information for two sets of people. – Howard Schultz
You can’t build any kind of organization if you’re not going to surround yourself with people who have experience and skill base beyond your own. – Howard Schultz
Many companies today are reducing hours of full-time people to get under the minimum so they don’t have to pay health care costs. I just shake my head because that’s not going to build long-term value and trust with your people. – Howard Schultz
People ask me what’s the most important function when you’re starting an organization or setting up the kind of culture and values that are going to endure. The discipline I believe so strongly in is H.R., and its the last discipline that gets funded. – Howard Schultz
Managing a business, small or large, today requires an extremely disciplined, thoughtful approach with regard to the pressure that people are under. – Howard Schultz
I think we are living in a time where the consumer has lots of choices, whether it’s coffee, newspapers or whatever it is. And there is parity in the market place, and as a result of that, the consumer is beginning to make decisions, not just on what things cost and the convenience of it. – Howard Schultz
London, a city where creativity and innovation have always flourished, provides a significant home for Starbucks and a significant gateway into Europe. – Howard Schultz
I am concerned about any attrition in customer traffic at Starbucks, but I don’t want to use the economy, commodity prices or consumer confidence as an excuse. We must maintain a value proposition to our customers as well as differentiate the Starbucks Experience. That is the key. – Howard Schultz
My son is trying to be a sports writer, and my daughter is a college student. She wants to be a comedy writer, and she’s at film school. I discouraged both of them early on from getting involved in Starbucks. I didn’t think it would be fair; plus, they didn’t have any interest anyway. – Howard Schultz
We have a big opportunity in China. We think the number of stores here can rival the number in North America. – Howard Schultz
You walk into a retail store, whatever it is, and if there’s a sense of entertainment and excitement and electricity, you wanna be there. – Howard Schultz
I am concerned about any attrition in customer traffic at Starbucks, but I don’t want to use the economy, commodity prices or consumer confidence as an excuse. – Howard Schultz
I think many start-ups make mistakes because they are focusing on things that are farther ahead, and they haven’t done the work that has built the foundation to support it. – Howard Schultz
If you look at coffee, tea, food and juice, we think there are inherent opportunities. If you look at health bars or grab-and-go products that are in our stores, we think we can significantly enhance them and make them more widely available. – Howard Schultz
