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.

Any business today that embraces the status quo as an operating principle is going to be on a death march.

In many places where coffee is grown, deforestation is a major issue. With Starbucks' position in the marketplace and the respect and relationships we have, we can - and have, in some cases - been able to educate and influence people.

I was taken by the power that savoring a simple cup of coffee can have to connect people and create community.

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.

Starbucks has stores in America in many, many communities that are governed by many, many different municipalities. Starbucks cannot dictate to a municipality in Cincinnati or Kansas City or Sacramento how or why or when there should be a recycling program.

Care more than others think wise.

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.

Even though people are under economic pressure, they still want to support those brands with values that are compatible with their own.

People want guidance not rhetoric. They need to know what the plan of action is and how it will be implemented. They want to be given responsibility to help solve the problem and authority to act on it.

Most business people today are not going to invest in the uncertainty that exists in America.

I could've just walked away but I never could have forgiven myself to allow Starbucks to drift into mediocrity or not be relevant. I just couldn't be a bystander.

We sell tea in Starbucks, but I think the experience is very different. I think coffee is something that is quick - it's transactional. I think tea is more Zen-like. It requires a different environment.

The hardest thing about being a leader is demonstrating or showing vulnerability... When the leader demonstrates vulnerability and sensibility and brings people together, the team wins.

When youre surrounded by people who share a passionate commitment around a common purpose anything is possible.

Turning a culture around is very difficult to do because it's based on a series of many, many decisions, and the organization is framed by those decisions.

I cant imagine a day without coffee. I cant imagine

If you pour your heart into your work or into any worthy enterprise you can achieve dreams others may think impossible.

When I first discovered in the early 1980s the Italian espresso bars in my trip to Italy, the vision was to re-create that for America - a third place that had not existed before. Starbucks re-created that in America in our own image; a place to go other than home or work. We also created an industry that did not exist: specialty coffee.

The challenge of the retail business is the human condition.

My mother taught me something at a young age - she said 'you are the company you keep'. To define yourself by some label or some level of resources - that's pretty shallow.

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.

Expect more than others think possible.

What I would say to young entrepreneurs is there's so many moments in your life where you have these dreams, and people are trying to protect you, and they say, perhaps, friends, family, parents sometimes, they don't agree with it, they think, 'This is just too high of a hurdle.' And I don't agree with that.

Managing and navigating through a financial crisis is no fun at all.

I think what we're lacking in society, not only in the U.S. but also around the world, is to find heroes once again and to celebrate these kind of people.

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.

I think if youre an entrepreneur youve got to dream big and then dream bigger.

Great companies that build an enduring brand have an emotional relationship with customers that has no barrier. And that emotional relationship is on the most important characteristic, which is trust.

People have come to me over the years and said to me: 'I admire the culture of Starbucks. Can you come give a speech and help us turn our culture around?' I wish it were that easy. Turning a culture around is very difficult to do because it's based on a series of many, many decisions, and the organization is framed by those decisions.

I was working probably at the age of 10, when I had my first paper route. I had every different kind of job you could possibly imagine as a young kid.

Companies should not have a singular view of profitability. There needs to be a balance between commerce and social responsibility... The companies that are authentic about it will wind up as the companies that make more money.

Don't buy preground coffee.

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.

The evolving social and digital media platforms and highly innovative and relevant payment capabilities are causing seismic changes in consumer behavior and creating equally disruptive opportunities for business.

There's this myth that has been exacerbated by others that Starbucks means a $4 cup of coffee, which is not true.

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.

Often, organizations need bold, grand gestures to galvanize people towards a new mission or refocus their attention.

In the 1960s, if you were a blue collar worker or uneducated, and you had an injury on the job, the company basically dismissed you.

In life, you can blame a lot of people and you can wallow in self-pity, or you can pick yourself up and say, 'Listen, I have to be responsible for myself.'

When it comes to Starbucks, I take every threat very personally.

Profitability is a shallow goal if it doesn't have a real purpose, and the purpose has to be share the profits with others.

For Starbucks, there will be no shortage of the highest-quality arabica beans. I suspect that for some others there could potentially be a problem, not in the near term, but over time.

The Starbucks customer and the Teavana customer are two very different customers, two different need states that are highly complimentary.

Starbucks trying to build a different kind of company around the balance of profitably and benevolence. A social conscience. And that isn't a program it has to be a way of life.

Everyone must have a shot at the American Dream.

Victory is much more meaningful when it comes not just from one person but from the joint achievements of many.

Cutting prices or putting things on sale is not sustainable business strategy.

The premium single-cup segment is the fastest-growing business within the global coffee industry.

Business leaders cannot be bystanders.

We are witnessing a seismic change in consumer behavior. That change is being brought about by technology and the access people have to information.

I'm optimistic about the country; I'm optimistic about the American people.

Success is best when it's shared.

We live in an age where everything is based on the short term.

The future of America is not an entitlement. We have been given a treasure chest of gifts and opportunities, but some people are being left behind, and success is not sustainable unless it is shared.

Victory is much more meaningful when it comes not just from one person, but from the joint achievements of many.

We have a big opportunity in China. We think the number of stores here can rival the number in North America.

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.

Starbucks is committed to evolving and enhancing our customer experience with innovative and wholesome food offerings.

I think if you're an entrepreneur, you've got to dream big and then dream bigger.

Managing a business, small or large, today requires an extremely disciplined, thoughtful approach with regard to the pressure that people are under.

I think my whole life, because of where I came from, I had a fear of failure.

Starbucks is in my blood. It is such a part of me that letting it unravel simply was not an option.

In the 1960s, if you introduced a new product to America, 90% of the people who viewed it for the first time believed in the corporate promise. Then 40 years later if you performed the same exercise, less than 10% of the public believed it was true. The fracturing of trust is based on the fact that the consumer has been let down.

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.

We need to reinvent food at Starbucks. Less could be more.

When you're surrounded by people who share a passionate commitment around a common purpose, anything is possible.

The lifeblood of job creation in America is small business, but they can't get access to credit.

I never took classic business classes in college, so I don't have the background that any of the people running large companies have.

Starbucks represents something beyond a cup of coffee.

I'm in a different position than most CEO's. I'm a founder. I'm not a hired CEO. Now, I can be fired by the board, but most CEO's are hired by the board.

Success in the United States is not an entitlement in China. You have to go there and earn it, and earn it the right way.

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.

I'm a voracious reader.

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.

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.

At an early age, my mother gave me this feeling that anything is possible, and I believe that.

I think the currency of leadership is transparency. You've got to be truthful. I don't think you should be vulnerable every day, but there are moments where you've got to share your soul and conscience with people and show them who you are, and not be afraid of it.

Dream more than others think practical.

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.

I think there is probably no better person to aspire to emulate than Steve Jobs and what he has done at Apple in terms of his leadership, his innovation, not settling for mediocrity.

The growth of the company and the license that Starbucks has is to participate in other food and beverage opportunities. We have a global business... and in many parts of the world, tea is much, much bigger than coffee, and we're going to bring tea and bring our capability and our understanding of what we've done for coffee to tea.

Starbucks has a role and a meaningful relationship with people that is not only about the coffee.

I can't imagine a day without coffee. I can't imagine!

I'm not losing any sleep over Dunkin Donuts.

When you start a company, it's a singular focus. You have the wind at your back.

When we began Starbucks, what I wanted to try to do was to create a set of values, guiding principles, and culture.

I love being the underdog.

I really believe that you cannot use the stock market as a proxy for the economy.

Starbucks is not an advertiser; people think we are a great marketing company, but in fact we spend very little money on marketing and more money on training our people than advertising.

I think Starbucks created a platform and, ultimately, a runway for many other companies to emulate. I suspect if we had not achieved what we have, there would have been many regional brands that would have succeeded. But I'm not sure there would have been a national brand of the scope of Starbucks.

I always saw myself wanting to do something deemed successful and good at the same time.

I probably have about four or five cups of coffee a day. I make myself an espresso macchiato when I wake, which is a shot of espresso and just a dollop of steamed milk. Then, if I'm going to do some work at home, I would make myself a French press. It's the best way to make conventional coffee.

China traditionally has been a tea-drinking country but we turned them into coffee drinkers.

In many places where coffee is grown, deforestation is a major issue.

Cutting prices or putting things on sale is not sustainable business strategy. The other side of it is that you can't cut enough costs to save your way to prosperity.

I do feel, in a sense, the rules of engagement for citizenship has changed, and we must encourage other people to speak up and to take action.

A great business has to have a conscience. You have to know who you are and who you are not.

I'm not as interested in what you make as I am in what you're passionate about. What business are you really in?

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.