How Starbucks Grew from 28 Humble Stores to 15,000 Worldwide

Howard Behar was the “Steve Wozniak” of Starbucks. Put another way, Howard made the vision of Starbucks come to life. During Behar’s tenure the company went from 28 stores to over 15,000 stores. 

A couple years ago while Behar was in retirement, he walked to the back of a Starbucks where he saw a poster. 

Be nice. Be fast. Be clean. 

Howard ripped it off the wall and asked: 

Who put this up here!? How about you just put a sign that says: 

Be Human. 

Behar had extraordinary clarity in his leadership at Starbucks, and never lost sight that “everything in life is about serving other human beings.” 

He famously repeated: “We’re in the people business and happen to serve coffee.”  

Starbucks wasn’t started by coffee gurus. The empire of Starbucks was built when the mission statement was honest and embodied by Howard Schultz & Howard Behar: “Nurturing & inspiring the human spirit.”  

Schultz & Behar had an ambitious vision. They wanted to be a global brand when they only had locations in a few states. In fact, there were 21 other coffee companies that could have squashed Starbucks… 

But Starbucks had a competitive advantage… Behar, repeated constantly: “The person who sweeps the floor should choose the broom.”  

Putting humans first. Seeking to serve before being understood. That’s tough to compete against. Starbucks put incredible trust in its team.  

You grow the people, the people grow the organization, the organization grows the business. 

Whether you are the CEO of an international public company, a Superintendent on a job site, a clerk at the grocery store, or a stay at home mom with a baby… we’re all doing the exact same thing: “we’re serving other human beings.” 

Behar captured the essence of what we are all doing with our lives: people serving other people. 

How can you see your work this week as an opportunity to serve other people? 

Onward, 

Matt