Customer : Bold Coffee

Take the Starbucks VIA™ Ready Brew Challenge – the proof is in the cup!

Howard Schultz — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:01:00 GMT

Today is a significant and momentous day. Starbucks VIA™ Ready Brew, a breakthrough innovation in instant coffee that delivers the same great flavor and quality of Starbucks coffee is launching in the U.S. and Canada - now you can find Starbucks VIA™ Ready Brew at a store near you!

Starbucks VIA™ is 100% natural roasted arabica coffee in an instant form that is rich and full-bodied just like a fresh brewed cup of Starbucks coffee. I invite you to try this new coffee experience. Join us at your local Starbucks between October 2 and October 5 and take the Taste Challenge. You can try Starbucks VIA™ next to our brewed coffee and see if you can taste the difference! Just for taking the Taste Challenge, we will offer you a free brewed coffee during your next visit and $1 off a three-pack of Starbucks VIA™ (US-only).

Look forward to hearing your stories from the Taste Challenge.

Howard

Our Newest TV Ads - Starbucks VIA™ Ready Brew

sbx_bean — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:45:00 GMT

Over the weekend, we launched our newest television ad campaign. It aired during Saturday Night Live announcing Starbucks VIA™ Ready Brew.

In case you didn’t get a chance to see the ads. Here they are…

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Which one is your favorite? If you are having trouble viewing the videos, please click here.

P.S. For those of you flying United on September 29, you can try Starbucks VIA™ Ready Brew in flight. Never be without great coffee™.

Trivia Tuesday: Featuring Farmer Support Centers

sbx_bean — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 18:50:00 GMT

Question: What is a Farmer Support Center?
Answer: You may have heard the term “Farmer Support Center” from Starbucks before. Our farmer support centers are run by agronomists and other scientists in coffee-growing regions so that they can work directly with coffee farmers and suppliers. The staff evaluates social, environmental and economic aspects of coffee production to help ensure that the coffee Starbucks purchases is grown and processed in a responsible manner while helping to improve the quality of the crops. Our agronomists also help share best practices with farmers to improve growing and conservation techniques.

Question: When did Starbucks first open a Farmer Support Center?
Answer: The first Starbucks Farmer Support Center was opened in Costa Rica in 2004. This center allows Starbucks to work closely with farmers and suppliers who implement Starbucks coffee growing guidelines known as Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices, the ethical sourcing guidelines under Starbucks™ Shared Planet™. C.A.F.E Practices is a set of guidelines that include more than 120 standards for quality, environmental practices, social and economic standards, and price transparency to farmers. This commitment to ethical sourcing allows coffee farmers to share in Starbucks mission and success.

Question: How many centers are there?
Answer: Last month we opened our second Farmer Support Center in Rwanda. Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, visited Rwanda to meet with President Kagame, the head of the Coffee Development Board, and local coffee farmers and exporters. The center will work with East African coffee communities to help them continue to improve their coffee quality and to increase the number of suppliers producing coffee that can be imported by Starbucks. The farmer support and service is available for free. Starbucks agronomists and quality experts work directly with farmers to develop and use more responsible methods to grow better coffee and help improve the quality and size of the harvest to attract better prices.

We are also planning on opening a center in Ethiopia at a later date.

Question: Are there more pictures of Howard’s trip to Rwanda for the opening of the Farmer Support Center?
Answer: Yes! Check out our Facebook album (you don’t have to have a Facebook profile to view our photos).

More questions? Post them in the comment stream below. Thanks for reading!

To learn more about our Farmer Support Centers, please visit our Starbucks™ Shared Planet™ website.

Brewed Coffee Calendar – Bold Pick of the Day

Colin Frolich — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 21:22:00 GMT

Colin from the brewed team here. I wanted to share some changes we’re making to help customers better understand their brewed coffee choices. Starting today, 6/29, all of our U.S. Company-Operated and Licensed Stores will begin displaying new signage reflecting a change in name from Today’s Morning Pick to Bold Pick of the Day for our “bolder” coffee offering. The new name and updated signage will mean much clearer messaging around choice of brewed coffee. We are changing the name because we’ve received feedback that the former name did not fully communicate the fact that the coffees on our rotating calendar are among our bolder and more complex coffees. The new name also helps clarify that the offering isn’t only available in the morning, as many stores will brew the Bold Pick of the Day well into the afternoon. Stores with lower customer demand may elect to brew on request after noon. Stores will still be rotating this coffee on a weekly basis and as usual, I am excited to post the second half of the Summer Brewed Coffee Calendar below. One noteworthy addition this summer is Gazebo Blend®. It’s one of my favorites and we’ll be brewing it for only two weeks. So, come on in and grab a cup today and take home a pound home with you!

Week 1: 6/30-7/5
Gazebo Blend®
A medium-bodied blend of East African coffees, with crisp, clean acidity and floral, fruity flavor notes.

Week 2: 7/6-7/12
Café Estima Blend®
Our rich and roasty-sweet combination of Fair Trade Certified™ coffees is from Latin America and East Africa, and it shows just how delicious it can be to turn beliefs into actions. This is good coffee doing good things for the farmers who grew it.
The sweetness of this coffee is achieved through a slightly darker roast. It’s a full-bodied, well-balanced coffee with great versatility, something that is equally at home in your press, drip brewer or espresso machine.

Week 3: 7/13-7/19
Sumatra
A partner (employee) favorite. This coffee is the one single-origin offering that we most often choose to enjoy at home, after we take off the green apron.
Why do we love it so? It has a full, buttery body with virtually no acidity, so the coffee’s intensity and flavor simply lingers on your tongue. Make no mistake, this is a slurping coffee. At its best, there’s no mistaking the concentrated herbal notes and earthy aroma – telltale marks this beloved brew have left on our shirts and our hearts.

Week 4: 7/20-7/26
Gazebo Blend®

Week 5: 7/27-8/2
Sumatra

Week 6: 8/3-8/9
Gold Coast Blend®
Just like the city of Chicago, which it celebrates. In 1987, as Starbucks opened its first stores in the Second City, our coffee artists created a blend that would stand up to the coldest winds off Lake Michigan.
The source of this blend’s bigness is a secret recipe of Latin America, Asia/Pacific and dark roast coffees. The interplay of these very different coffees weaves a deep and densely rich, complex taste, with waves of flavor unfolding as you drink it.
Because of its great depth, this coffee is a fun one to pair foods with. Here are four flavors that can hold their own next to it: tangy cranberry, woodsy maple, buttery-sweet caramel and dense cheesecake.

Week 7: 8/10-8/16
Sumatra

Week 8: 8/17-8/23
Caffè Verona®
Caffè Verona® is a seductive blend of beans from Latin America and Indonesia, with a gentle touch of Italian Roast lending depth, soul and sweetness.

Week 9: 8/24-8/30
Sumatra

Zagat votes Starbucks - #1 Best Coffee

Michelle G — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:00:00 GMT

Thanks to YOU and our passion for coffee, today Zagat Survey® ranked Starbucks #1 Best Coffee in the Fast Food and Quick Refreshment categories and as the #1 Most Popular Quick Refreshment Chain. Zagat Survey® rates and reviews companies based on thousands of opinions and is recognized as a leading source for consumer information. Your opinion matters and we thank you for this recognition and the ideas you share with us at My Starbucks Idea. Please chime in and share your thoughts and ideas with us about this exciting news...

Cheers!

Michelle Gass
executive vice president, Marketing and Category

® Registered trademark of Zagat Survey, LLC, used with permission. Within the Quick Refreshment category, ZAGAT 2009 National Restaurant Chain Survey. Within the Fast Food and Quick Refreshment categories, ZAGAT 2009 National Restaurant Chain Survey.

6/16 update: Wow! Thank you everyone for the overwhelming response to this great news. I’ve been reading through the comments and agree with you that it’s not just the great coffee that makes Starbucks #1. You have shared many comments about your store experience and the baristas. Thank you for recognizing our wonderful partners. Please continue to share your ideas on My Starbucks Idea so that we can enhance the Starbucks experience together. Visit us here at the Ideas in Action blog to check on our progress.

Michelle

Sneak Peek at New Ad Campaign

TerryDavenport — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 19:30:00 GMT

We frequently host visitors at our Starbucks Support Center in Seattle – literally from around the world. They talk to our partners from our Farmer Support Centers in origin countries, they hear how our buyers walk the farms in 28 countries to find the best 3% of the world’s coffee beans, they watch our master roasters in action and hear about the “2nd pop” that gives our coffee it’s one-of-a-kind taste, they learn about our Shared Planet practices and what that means for our relationships with Fair Trade, Conservation International and Product (RED), as well as for coffee farming communities to the local neighborhoods we serve.

…and the stories go on and on.

Time and time again I hear, “This is amazing! Nobody knows all this. Why don’t you tell your story?”

Well, the time has come to do just that. Today is the day we start.

There are two reasons why now is the time we should… really must… share these stories.

One: To meet the needs of today’s consumers who are looking for value, but value today has new meaning. It’s not about what’s cheapest – it’s about what’s best – for them, their families, their communities and the world around them. What was once a culture of conspicuous consumption (buying to be seen) has become a culture of conscientious consumption (buying to be heard). From a “me” world to a “we” world. In a very noisy marketplace, and with less money to spend, how do they decide where to spend? And what trade-offs must they make? When it comes to coffee, we believe the answer is simple.

Two: As a leader in coffee, it is not surprising that others are looking to compete for our coffee customers. A few are making claims that just don’t add up. It is time for Starbucks to tell our story.

So we’re embarking on a long-term, story telling campaign focused on the quality, value and our values. The campaign will build over time, and take advantage of multiple channels, both traditional and non-traditional, supporting all of the distribution points in our business. It will also be a validation for our customers – and our partners – of what Starbucks is all about and what we stand for.

Click play below or this link to see a video of Howard Schultz talking about why we are embarking on this journey, and previewing some of the concepts with partners, and to see the first ads.

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Finally you can see the first ad for this campaign in this Sunday’s New York Times: check out the back page of the business section.

…and let me know what you think.

Seasonal Coffee Line-Up Available at StarbucksStore.com

Steven Epstein — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 17:08:00 GMT

StarbucksStore.com has begun to offer our seasonal coffee lineup. Current whole bean seasonal offerings include Colombia Nariño Supremo (nutty, medium intensity), Brazil Ipanema Bourbon® (mild intensity), and Bella Vista F.W. Tres Rios Costa Rica (lively finish and medium intensity). StarbucksStore.com is also offering three ground Limited Reserve coffees including Sumatra Aceh, Colombia South Huila, and South Tanzania.

Pike Place(tm) Roast has recently been added to the core coffee line up at the online store. I enjoy this very approachable coffee when I’m hurrying through my local café. On a leisurely weekend I dwell over other favorites when they are available, such as my all-time hands-down-last-coffee-drink-on-earth favorite Ethiopia Harrar (last appearing as a Black Apron Exclusive® in June 2004) or Arabian Mocha Sanani (returning for a seasonal appearance next Month).