Summer Cold Brew Coffee Making Method! Super Simple Iced Coffee Recipe with Illustrated Tutorial!

Starbucks' Global Operations and Chinese Market

As a globally renowned coffee chain, Starbucks had, according to public data, more than 34,600 stores across 84 markets worldwide as of April this year. The Chinese market alone accounts for 5,700 of those stores, which makes it Starbucks' largest overseas market and its second-largest market overall.

Running a system this large means Starbucks has to contend with shifts in global supply and demand, rising raw-material prices, employee pay and benefits, and mental-health concerns. As the company's pivotal figure, interim CEO Howard Schultz returned in early April this year to serve as interim chief executive, helping Starbucks steer through a fresh round of financial and management "crises."

Challenges and Schultz's Return

Before his return, the prolonged pandemic had begun to stir unrest among Starbucks employees, who were unhappy about understaffed stores and the imbalance between their pay and their workload. Workers at multiple locations joined unions and demanded direct negotiations with the company. At the same time, changes in global supply and demand, steadily climbing prices for beverage raw materials, and inflation-driven cost increases across the board pushed Starbucks into a "vicious cycle" that spanned operations, finances, and employee management.

So on his first day back, Howard halted the stock buyback program and planned to redirect the funds that had been earmarked for buybacks toward employee benefits and store operations.

Rather than taking a hard line on the continuing union drive, Howard combined soft and firm tactics in the hope that employees would have a change of heart. He pointed out, for example, that under federal law Starbucks cannot unilaterally change the compensation and benefits of union members or the operating budgets of unionized stores. He hoped this would let employees choose their own path forward.

Leadership Changes and Future Plans

As interim CEO, however, Howard stressed that he would not stay at Starbucks too long. "For the company's future, we need to supplement our lacking multidimensional experience and professional knowledge," he said in a recent media interview.

Howard believes that some of Starbucks' current problems are of the company's own making. In the more than two months since his return, he has already asked some company veterans to leave in order to make room for new talent. In May this year, Starbucks announced that its human resources director and two vice presidents responsible for public affairs and public policy would depart, two of whom had worked at Starbucks for more than 15 years.

Another part of the challenge stems from the pandemic accelerating changes in consumer behavior. "No CEO could fully anticipate these challenges, and Starbucks needs to rethink its operating model," Howard said. He is therefore looking for managers from outside Starbucks to serve as the next CEO, a move that has left many investors and former management employees questioning whether Howard will truly let go of Starbucks.

In response, Schultz said he is encouraged by the diversity and quality of the current CEO candidates, and that his only concern is whether the next CEO can succeed. He also said the next CEO will be chosen this autumn, and that if everything goes smoothly, Howard will end his interim CEO role after the first-quarter financial report next year, while remaining on the company's board of directors.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Cold brew rewards the right bean: because a long, low-temperature steep amplifies floral and fruity notes while muting roast and woody tones, a light-to-medium roast usually shows best. FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia Sun-dried Huakui is a natural-process lot from the birthplace of coffee, its beans steeped in sweetness from the fruit and pulp of the cherry. Served cold, it opens up magnolia, creamy strawberry, dried mango, guava, and black tea.

For a juicier, more citrus-driven cup, FrontStreet Kenya Little Tomato comes from the SL28 and SL34 varieties grown in Thika and processed with the region's distinctive K72 double-wash; a medium-light roast turns its cherry tomato, pear, black plum, and smoked plum acidity into a bright, low-bitterness cold brew that stays refreshing over ice. If you want the same lift at a friendlier price, FrontStreet Colombia Papayo brings passion fruit, grape, apricot, and dried-fruit sweetness, and blending it 1:2 with FrontStreet Costa Rica Tarrazu adds a clean citrus snap while stretching value on the larger dose that cold brew demands.