Starbucks Company Methodology - Essay Example

The company sources approximately 50% of its beans from South America, 35% from the Pacific Rim, and 15% from East Africa.

            The company chooses its location very carefully to ensure the maximum customer traffic possible. The firm enjoys a tremendous competitive advantage in terms of reach because the firm has 16,635 franchises worldwide. The real estate strategy focuses on flexibility which allows the firm’s retail stores to fit in any type of area including corners, trapezoids, or triangles. The firm has built a tremendous corporate culture by empowering its employees. The employees of the company are referred to as baristas. The firm promotes diversity among its staff. “As partners, we embrace diversity to create a place each of us can be ourselves” (Starbucks). The corporation realizes that its employees are a critical success factor that enables the firm to offer its customer a unique experience. Some of the guiding principles of the company’s culture include providing a great work environment, applying the highest standard of excellence, satisfying the customer, and recognizing profitability are essential to the future success of the business.

             Starbucks has a tremendous variety of delicious coffees and hot drinks. The baristas have the freedom to customize the customer drinks to comply with their needs. The firm also offers pastries and sandwiches as part of its menu. The firm throughout its history has been very innovative in its roasting and blending of coffee. The firm undertakes a great deal of research by roasting its coffee in many different ways under different temperatures and time conditions to ensure that is getting as much as possible from its beans. After roasting the coffee is immediately vacuum sealed.  

            The company has been so successful because it created a unique experience for its customers. All Starbucks stores are equipped with Wi-Fi technology that allows its customers to surf the internet, while at the same time enjoying a cup of some of the best coffee blends in the world. In 2007 Starbucks formed a partnership with Apple to sell Tunes to capitalize on the company’s Wi-Fi network capabilities. The firm has formed many partnerships throughout its history with retailers, wholesalers, restaurants, and service providers. Some of its most renounced partnerships include United Airlines, Nordstrom, Barnes and Noble, PepsiCo, PriceCostco, Dreyer’s Ice Cream, and ARAMARK.   The firm pays close attention to the technology trends in the market. The firm recently created a specialized Starbucks application for iPhone devices. The brand value of the company is beyond what any other competitor enjoys. The company has always focused on ion internal strength and core competency which is the sale of world-class coffees. The firm is the most globalized coffeehouse in the world with a market presence in 55 countries across the globe. The company plans to open over 1000 stores in the emerging economy of China.  Starbucks Café due to a wide variety of competitive strategies should continue its market dominance in the retail coffee marketplace for years to come.