Starbucks originally found uniqueness through its trademark ambiance, high quality products and services, focus on customer experience, and position as a "second place." However, Starbucks rapidly expanded its store count and product lines, straying from its core business and competencies. To reclaim its uniqueness, Starbucks launched new instant coffee, introduced guidelines focusing baristas on fewer drinks at a time to improve customer experience, and aimed to bring back the brand building experience. The document recommends Starbucks refocus on its core competencies of quality products and services, enhance intangible aspects through tangible alignment, leverage technology, expand markets carefully, and never forget its mission and vision.

1. Starbucks: Re-creating
Its Uniqueness
Stella Marie H. Capule
BA 190 - Strategic Management
University of the Philippines
Prof. Mita Angela M. Dimalanta

2. STARBUCKS
• First store opened in 1971 in Seattle,
Washington
• 23,768 locations worldwide
• Mission
“To inspire and nurture human spirit – one
person, one cup, one neighborhood at a time.”
• Vision
“Establish Starbucks as the premier
purveyor of the finest coffee in the world while
maintaining our uncompromising principles
while we grow.”

3. What resources and capabilities
formed the basis of the uniqueness of
Starbucks in the first place?

4. STARBUCKS
• Trademark: AMBIANCE
• High quality products and services
• Core competency: Customer Experience
• “The Starbucks Experience”
• Valuable, rare, costly-to-imitate intangible
resource
• Positioned themselves as the “second
place.”

5. Tangible and Intangible Resources

6. Why and how did Starbucks lose its
uniqueness?
• Competencies can atrophy through
forgetting.
• Starbucks expanded operations
rapidly: doubled number of stores in 5
years (8,500 to 17,000 stores).
• Expanded product line.
• Stayed away from their core business.
• Starbucks forgot what made them
unique.

8. Re-creating Uniqueness
• 2009 – Launched Via (its new instant
coffee)
• 2010 – New guideline was introduced
• Baristas would no longer multitask, but
would focus on no more than two drinks
at a time, starting the second one while
finishing the first.
• GOAL: Bring back customer experience
that built Starbucks as a brand.

9. Recommendations
• Focus on their core competency and
provided high quality products and
services instead of expanding product
line.
• Enhance their intangible products
through aligning the tangible products to
their ‘culture’.
• Take advantage of technology (online
orders, apps).
• Venture out in new markets instead of
over-concentrating in one area.
• Never forget their VMO.

10. Resources
• https://www.starbucks.com/about-
us/company-information/mission-
statement
• https://www.starbucks.com/about-
us/company-information
• Rothaermel, F. T. (2015). Strategic
Management (2nd ed.). New York:
McGraw-Hill Education.

11. THANK YOU!