Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks

1. About Howard Schultz:

Howard Schultz is an American businessman and author, who is currently the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Starbucks Coffee Company. Schultz has written four books, three of which incorporate business memoir-style narratives.

2. With a net worth of $4.3 billion, Schultz was ranked by Forbes as the 209th-richest person in the United States (October 2020).

3. Born on: July 19, 1953, in Brooklyn, New York City, U.S.

4. Nationality: American

5. Quotes:

  • Great opportunities can be and have been created during tough economic times.
  • 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.
  • Dream more than others think practical.

6. Education:

  • In 1971, Schultz received his high school diploma from Canarsie.
  • He studied at Northern Michigan University (NMU) from 1971 to 1975, earning a B.A.

7. First Career:

  • Schultz remained in Michigan after receiving his degree and spent a year working at a ski lodge.
  • The Swedish cookware firm PAI Partners hired him in 1979 to be general manager of its American subsidiary, Hammarplast, after which he accepted a position as a salesman for Xerox in New York City. At Hammarplast, Schultz was in charge of the company’s American activities.
  • He went to the Starbucks Coffee Company in Seattle, Washington in 1981 to fulfill customers’ orders for plastic cone filters.
  • Schultz joined Starbucks as the director of retail operations and marketing in 1982 at the age of 29.

8. Schultz is a noted coffee aficionado, reportedly drinking four to five cups of coffee every day.

9. Schultz opened his first store ‘Il Giornale’ in 1986. The store offered ice cream in addition to coffee, had little seating, and played opera music in the background. Two years later, Starbucks’ management decided to focus on Peet’s Coffee & Tea and sold its Starbucks retail unit to Schultz for $3.8 million.

10. He renamed Il Giornale as Starbucks, and aggressively expanded it across the US. He did not want to franchise the outlets and retained its ownership.

11. In 1998, Schultz and investment banker Dan Levitan founded the venture financing firm Maveron. He and Levitan invest mostly in new businesses and consumer-oriented start-ups like eBay, Shutterfly, and Zulily.

12. Schultz expanded Starbucks: Starbucks grew from 11 coffee shops in Seattle to 28,000 locations in 77 countries between the 1980s and the time he retired.

13. Schultz’s net worth: Schultz has a net worth of US$3.9 billion as of July 2022.

14. Schultz’s vision of Starbucks: Over a cup of coffee, we bring people together. It’s time to celebrate what Starbucks has been, who we are, and a reimagining of who we’re going to be.

15. Awards and Honours:

  • In 1998, Schultz was awarded the “Israel 50th Anniversary Tribute Award
  • Schultz received the National Leadership Award from AIDs Action in 1999 for his charitable and educational efforts to fight AIDS.
  • Due to his endeavors in the economy and labour market, Schultz was named “Businessperson of the Year” by Fortune magazine in 2011.
  • He was subsequently named as the most giving CEO of 2015 by Fortune for his support of Starbucks’ healthcare benefits, educational opportunities, and employee stock options.
  • The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund gave Schultz the National Equal Justice Award in November 2017.

16. Publications:

  • His first book, Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time was written in 1997 with Dori Jones Yang.
  • His second book, Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul, co-written with Joanne Gordon, was published in 2011.
  • His third book, For Love of Country: What Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism, and Sacrifice, co-written with Rajiv Chandrasekaran, was published in 2014.
  • In 2019, he published his fourth book, From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America.

17. Schultz is an outspoken neoliberal, centrist, technocrat, and political independent.

18. Parents: Fred Schultz, a truck driver, and Elaine.

19. Spouse: In 1982, Schultz married Sheri Kersch, an interior designer

20. Children: Two children (Addison Kersch Schultz, Eliahu Jordan Schultz)

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Nishanthi

Nishanthi

Nishanthi is a business associate at HelloLeads. Her mission to help start-ups and small businesses to improve productivity and help them to scale up. She enjoys writing on work life balance. Send an email to blogs@helloleads.io to reach her.

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