25 Eye-Opening Starbucks Statistics and Facts

Since brewing up its first cups of coffee in Seattle in 1971, Starbucks has grown into the largest coffeehouse chain in the world. With its signature roasts, creative drinks, cozy cafes, and global presence, the Starbucks brand has won the hearts (and taste buds) of millions. Let‘s take a deep dive into 25 fascinating Starbucks statistics and facts that tell the story of how this coffee empire rose to the top.

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Starbucks History and Global Reach

  1. Starbucks was founded by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker in Seattle, Washington in 1971. The three friends met while students at the University of San Francisco.

  2. Former CEO Howard Schultz joined Starbucks as director of operations and marketing in 1982. After a fateful trip to Italy where he was inspired by the Italian coffeehouse experience, Schultz pushed to transform Starbucks from a coffee roaster into a chain of cafes. When the founders resisted, Schultz left to open his own coffee shop called Il Giornale in 1985.

  3. In 1987, the original founders sold the Starbucks chain to Schultz and Il Giornale for $3.8 million. Schultz renamed Il Giornale to Starbucks and rapidly expanded the chain across the U.S. and internationally in the late 1980s and 1990s.

  4. As of 2022, Starbucks has over 34,000 stores across 80 countries. The company operates over 15,000 stores in the United States and licenses another 17,000 stores in other countries.

  5. The country with the second highest number of Starbucks locations after the U.S. is China, which had over 5,500 stores as of 2021. China has been Starbucks‘ fastest growing market, with a new store opening every 15 hours on average.

  6. Believe it or not, there are over 30,000 ways to customize a Starbucks beverage, with various combinations of espresso shots, syrups, milks, toppings, and add-ins. This customization is a key part of the Starbucks experience.

Financial Muscle of the Coffee Giant

  1. Starbucks generated $29.1 billion in net revenue in fiscal 2021, an impressive rebound from 2020 when the pandemic forced many store closures and slashed revenue to $23.5 billion. For perspective, in the decade from 2010 to 2020, Starbucks grew revenue at a compound annual rate of 10%.

  2. Starbucks is the clear leader in the U.S. coffee shop market, capturing about 40% market share, over 7 times the share of its closest competitor Dunkin‘. On a typical day, Starbucks serves over 8 million customers.

  3. As a public company, Starbucks currently has a market capitalization of around $100 billion, making it one of the most valuable restaurant brands in the world. For comparison, McDonald‘s has a market cap of about $200 billion.

  4. An investor who bought just one share of Starbucks stock at its initial public offering price of $17 in 1992 would have over $14,000 today, accounting for stock splits and dividends reinvested. That‘s an astronomical return of over 82,000%!

Ethical Practices and Employee Care

  1. From the beginning, Starbucks has focused on ethical sourcing of high quality coffee while providing farmers a fair price. In 2000, Starbucks started offering Fair Trade Certified coffee and has grown into the largest purchaser of Fair Trade coffee in the world.

  2. Starbucks has made a pledge to source 100% of its coffee ethically by 2020 through its Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices, which ensure coffee quality while promoting social, economic and environmental standards. In 2021, 98.6% of Starbucks coffee was ethically sourced.

  3. Starbucks spends more on employee health insurance than it does on coffee beans. The company offers comprehensive health coverage, equity in the form of stock, 401(k) matching, tuition reimbursement, and other benefits to all full-time and part-time employees, a rarity in the restaurant industry.

  4. Starbucks refers to its employees as "partners" to foster a culture of shared success. As of 2021, Starbucks employed nearly 350,000 partners globally. Remarkably, Starbucks employee turnover rate of about 65% is much lower than the industry average of over 150%.

Menu Favorites and Customer Loyalty

  1. The Starbucks Rewards loyalty program is massively popular, with over 26 million active members as of 2022. These Rewards members accounted for over half of Starbucks sales in 2021.

  2. The most popular Starbucks drink is the classic Cafe Latte, followed by the Iced White Chocolate Mocha, Pumpkin Spice Latte, Vanilla Latte, and Iced Caramel Macchiato. Brewed coffee and Americanos are also top sellers.

  3. Starbucks is credited with bringing the Pumpkin Spice Latte to the masses. First launched in 2003, the PSL is now Starbucks‘ most popular seasonal beverage of all time, with over 600 million sold to date.

  4. Another Starbucks creation, the Frappuccino blended beverage, is now trademarked by the company after it bought the rights from its coffee bean supplier in 1994. In its first year, the Frappuccino brought in over $100 million.

  5. Cold drinks like iced coffee, cold brew, Frappuccinos, shaken iced teas, and Refreshers now make up over 50% of Starbucks sales, even overtaking hot coffee as the most popular drinks in 2021.

Innovation and Growth Outlook

  1. As consumer preferences shift, Starbucks continues to innovate its menu with plant-based options like oat, almond, soy, and coconut milks and creamers. In 2020 Starbucks also began offering plant-based breakfast sandwiches as its first foray into vegan food options.

  2. Starbucks launched its Mobile Order & Pay system in 2014, allowing customers to order and pay on their phone and pick up in store. This technology now accounts for about a quarter of transactions.

  3. During the pandemic, Starbucks rapidly added more drive-thru locations, which grew to over 50% of its U.S. portfolio by 2021. Starbucks is also experimenting with pickup-only locations in urban areas.

  4. Starbucks plans to expand to about 55,000 locations by 2030, driven by growth in China and the U.S. The company expects China to eventually overtake the U.S. as its largest market.

  5. As part of its sustainability commitment, Starbucks has pledged to cut its carbon emissions, water usage and waste by 50% by 2030. Starbucks is also shifting away from single-use plastics and implementing more reusable packaging.

  6. For over a decade, Starbucks cups have featured a variety of customer-designed artwork. Each year, Starbucks receives around 4 million creative cup submissions from all over the world.

From its humble origins at Seattle‘s Pike Place Market to its now ubiquitous green mermaid logo, Starbucks has not only revolutionized how the world drinks coffee, but how companies can grow through an unwavering focus on product quality, customer experience, employee care, and social impact. The numbers show Starbucks is brewing up continued success for years to come.