Who are the founders of Starbucks (when was Starbucks founded + More Information)?

Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse in the world, and it would be interesting to learn about the brains behind it. So, who are the founders of Starbucks?

I have known of Starbucks’ existence ever since I was a child, and have been a loyal customer. I became curious about who were the founders of this incredible coffee giant, which has stood the test of time, as well as learn of its history and journey to greatness.

I learned that Starbucks was founded by three men who met at university and were passionate about selling high-quality coffee beans, so they decided to start a coffeehouse. Their names are Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Zev Siegl. I decided to write this article to expound more on who these founders were and the history of Starbucks. If you’re curious to know more, keep reading.

When was Starbucks founded?

Starbucks was founded in 1971, opening its first shop on 30^th March 1971 in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by three business partners: Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Zev Siegl. The three met while at the University of San Francisco and were inspired to sell equipment and high-quality coffee beans by a coffee roasting entrepreneur known as Alfred Peet.

The first Starbucks shop was located in Seattle, at 2000 Western Avenue from 1971 to 1976. They then later moved the store to 1912 Pike Place Market, Elliott Bay, Seattle, Washington, United States.

What is the history of coffee at Starbucks?

Initially, Starbucks only sold coffee beans, which they purchased from Alfred Peet’s store, Peet’s Coffee and Tea. In 1973, Alfred Peet stopped supplying coffee beans to Starbucks and began training their new coffee roast master, Jim Reynolds. They did this so that Starbucks would begin roasting and selling their coffee beans.

They did this for over a decade, until 1982 when they began to sell brewed coffee. This was the result of being urged by a man from New York, named Howard Schultz to begin selling brewed espresso coffee. This was a massive success and by 1986, Starbucks had opened six stores in Seattle.

In the following year, the owners sold the Starbucks chain to Howard Schultz, who quickly began to expand the company and open more stores. By 1989, there were 46 Starbucks stores located in the Pacific Northwest and Midwest. By this time, they were roasting more than two million pounds of coffee annually.

In 1994, Starbucks acquired the rights to use, market, make and sell the Frappuccino coffee beverage . This beverage is iced coffee with flavored syrups, whipped cream, and a variety of toppings.

Since then, Starbucks has constantly expanded its menu, by selling a wide variety of coffee drinks. This includes espressos, frappuccinos, instant coffee, coffee capsules, reserve coffee beans, and barrel-aged coffee.

How did the founders of Starbucks come up with its name?

Gordon Bowker, who was one of the core founders of Starbucks, recalled that one of his business partners named Terry Heckler, thought at the time, names that start with the letters ‘st’ were powerful. The founders then began creating a list of names that start with ‘st’.

They initially settled with ‘Starbo’, which was the name of the mining town in the Cascade Range. The founders’ group then remembered ‘Starbuck’, which was the name of the chief mate in the children’s book, Moby Dick. They settled on this name because it made the most sense, and from then, Starbucks was born.

How did the founders of Starbucks come up with its famous logo?

Starbucks is also known for its famous logo, which has the brand’s main colors, white and green, and an enlarged, illustrated image of a woman with long hair, and the Starbucks wordmark that was around her, removed.

The woman is known to be a twin-tailed mermaid, known as Siren. The founders were going through some ancient marine books and came across the mermaid named siren. They chose this image because they liked it and believed it aligned with the overall vision of Starbucks.

FAQ Section

When did Starbucks go international?

In 1996, Starbucks began opening stores outside North America. The first one was in Japan, then in Europe and China in 1998 and 1999 respectively.

What was the first Starbucks coffee?

The first Starbucks coffee was brewed espresso.

Are there Starbucks stores on every continent?

Yes, there are. Starbucks is an international brand and has over 30,000 stores all over the world.