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The life of Starbucks founder?
In Seattle, the father of Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, always likes to talk about a young man who came from his hometown and made extraordinary achievements. He is howard schultz who founded Starbucks coffee empire. Before retiring, Gates Sr. was a partner in the largest law firm in the town, which happened to be the legal representative of Schultz, who was just a young man full of dedication and bent on developing the coffee industry. "As a professional lawyer, if you see someone like Schultz bring a career plan like Starbucks, his eyes will shine," recalled Gates Sr. "Schultz has a rare talent. He is tenacious and decent. He is a legend. "

At present, the development momentum of Starbucks is enviable. Its annual fiscal revenue has continued to grow by more than 20%. The sales of "the same store" (that is, a store that has been open for more than one year) surged1month and1February last year 1 1%, which is rare for 10 years. In addition, Starbucks shares increased by 56% compared with last year, and the market value of initial public offering 1992 increased by 30.28%, a record high.

In order to realize globalization, Schultz is trying to build a strong company, including setting up a new management team and establishing a large coffee roasting factory to help coffee growers improve the varieties of coffee beans to meet Starbucks' strict standards and a large number of demands.

Last year, the company acquired Seattle Coffee Company, which is famous for selling coffee at low prices, and plans to develop it into a business with an annual income of $6,543.80 billion. Since June 5438+ 10 this year, Starbucks has opened many branches in France and more window-type branches in the United States that are convenient for drivers to buy. In a word, the company announced that it will open 1300 branches all over the world in 2004.

Starbucks owner, he comes from a slum, Schultz comes from a Jewish family and grew up in a slum in new york. He lives in a small apartment with his family and shares a small bed with his brothers and sisters. The ground outside the house was filthy, and the plane flying to JFK airport roared relentlessly above. Besides Jews, immigrants from Italy, Ireland and Africa also live here. Schultz spent his childhood in this harsh environment, and at the same time, he also shaped his strong character and looked fearless.

Schultz often tells a story that happened when he was a child. One day, when he entered the room, he found his father, who made a living as a handyman, lying in bed. It turned out that his ankle was broken. Since then, he has also lost his job, and his family's economy is even more difficult because there is no medical benefit. "I will never forget this scene. My father is a blue-collar worker who is about to collapse. His value has not been reflected and respected, which makes him feel bitter and angry. So I made up my mind never to let this happen to my employees. " Schultz said. This is why even many Starbucks part-time employees enjoy all medical benefits.

It was American football that gave Schultz a chance to get out of Brooklyn. Later, Schultz was hired by the Wildcats of Northern Michigan University and won a scholarship, thus becoming the first person in his family to go to college. Although the winter in Northern Michigan University is extremely cold, at least Schultz's future is full of hope.

The birth of an idea, the opening of a career.

However, when he knew that he had nothing to look forward to in his football career, Schultz devoted all his energy to his study. After he got his bachelor's degree in business from 65438 to 0975, he got a job as a salesman in new york branch of Xerox Company, which was a good job for the students who had to pay off their school debts at that time. But soon, he jumped to a company that imported Swedish kitchen utensils and became the vice president of the company's American branch. While selling products, he found that a small company named Starbucks in Seattle bought many coffee machines from him. Out of curiosity, he went to Seattle to see for himself. There, he saw Starbucks, which specializes in selling freshly brewed coffee, spices and other condiments made from coffee.

Soon Schultz realized that he would have to deal with coffee for the rest of his life. At that time, Starbucks was founded in 197 1, and has been carefully managing coffee beans, tea and spices, with only four branches. When Schultz first came, Starbucks only focused on selling high-quality coffee beans and didn't want to provide beverage service. "When I came here, I smelled the fragrance of coffee for the first time, which was completely original. I feel like an unfinished diamond, and I have the ability to cut it into bright jewels. "

1982, Schultz resolutely resigned from his post with an annual salary of $75,000 and joined Starbucks as the retail business and marketing director of the coffee shop. Schultz began selling coffee beans to restaurants and coffee shops in Seattle. A year later, Schultz had the opportunity to go to Milan on business. When he walked into a local cafe and drank his first cup of espresso milk coffee, he came up with the idea of establishing the Starbucks we see today. "The original relaxed atmosphere, the space for making friends and the change of mood are the essence of cafes that really attract customers to visit again and again. What everyone wants is not a cup of coffee, but a moment to enjoy. This is what Starbucks should do. I was really in high spirits, "he later recalled. "This is not available in the United States. I have a hunch that I will make great achievements."

However, the founder of Starbucks sneered at Schultz's idea. In desperation, Schultz left Starbucks on 1985 and opened some small coffee bar chains in Seattle and Vancouver. Two years later, he finally raised enough venture capital to buy all the shares of Starbucks. The lawyer who reached the agreement is Bill Gates Sr. Schultz can finally let go of his hands and feet to realize his dream.

Starbucks, the third space between home and office.

"In his own shop, he always smiles from ear to ear." People often say this about Schultz. Why not?

Starbucks is indeed a proud place. Schultz always greets employees and customers sincerely when he comes to Starbucks. "Starbucks is my third destination." Schultz always sits down, drinks coffee and has a cup of coffee after chatting with others. "The first is home, the second is the office, and Starbucks is in between. Living here makes people feel comfortable, safe and warm. " Schultz said that he is trying to promote a brand-new "coffee life" in the United States. Whether you agree with his business philosophy or not, just looking at the number of people who patronize Starbucks every week-25 million people, is enough to impress people.

Four years ago, Schultz resigned as CEO and became the chairman and chief strategist of Starbucks, which is very similar to his fellow countryman and Microsoft President Bill Gates. He gave the CEO position to Olin Smith, who is 10 years older than him. Why did Schultz do this? "Because Olin is qualified for this job." Schultz's answer is very short. It is this change that enables Schultz to get rid of tedious daily affairs such as budget meetings. "In the beginning, only yuppies were willing to patronize Starbucks. Now, there is no need to do special marketing. The number of tourists far exceeds our estimate, including the elderly, young people, people of all races and backgrounds, just as people all over the world have appeared. " Smith said.

"Our new steam pressurized automatic espresso brewing device has greatly accelerated our service speed, and our products have never been so competitive." Smith proudly said, "Now, we have the ability to open branches in places that we never dreamed of before, and there are various forms of joining, and we can also form joint ventures, licensing agreements, or sole proprietorships."

Looking ahead, the legend remains the same.

Today, Schultz has joined Starbucks for 22 years, and at the same time, he has also cast his own glorious image. Now Schultz is a very rich man, personally controlling180,000 shares with a market value of 600 million.

Dollars. At the same time, he was also an early investor in Yi Bei, owning tens of millions of dollars worth of company shares. It is estimated that Schultz's personal net worth exceeds $654.38 billion.

Schultz chose not to talk about his private life. At present, he lives with his wife and a pair of underage children in an apartment with an area of nearly 600 square meters, from which he can have a bird's eye view of Lake Washington. In the evening, you can hear his son shooting under the basketball stand in his backyard.