Starbucks CEO Schultz promises "to offer a renewed Starbucks Experience to our customers"

Yesterday I wondered in a post whether CEO Howard Schultz will reveal specific changes today or just deliver vague promises like "a better Starbucks experience."

It turns out it's the latter; he's promising "a renewed Starbucks Experience." (I was so close.)

He also says:

* "Over the coming months, our management team will focus on building a long-term model to realize our transformation agenda, and drive long-term shareholder value."

* "We will do that by being laser focused on delivering what our customers want and expect, and providing our partners with the tools to help them exceed our customers’ expectations."

* "Our actions will dramatically change the business, which will enable us to offer a renewed Starbucks Experience to our customers, while systematically building the foundation for strong, sustainable growth in fiscal 2009 and beyond." (Read more from the Starbucks Press Release)

Comments

[embean]

I like how everything he says means nothing.

[Melody]

Is this the same thing that is to be announced at 2 pm today (in literally just a minute) -
http://investor.starbucks.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=99518&p=irol-IRHome

^ Someone had posted that as a link to listen to him at 2 pm today ...

[STARBUCKS GOSSIP webmaster]

His statements were made in a press release. I will be listening to what he says in the conference call and will post those remarks.

[Vicki Verona]

Im listening as well.

[embean]

I hope he says something that's not BS.

[Vicki Verona]

BREAKFAST SANDWICHES ARE GOING TO BE DISCONTINUED BY END OF 2008

[embean]

discontinuing breakfast sandwiches ???!

[Vicki Verona]

WARMING OVENS WILL CONTINUE TO EXIST, FOR WARMING PASTRIES

I can't hear him!!!!

[AverageJoel]

Did he reall just say that? No more breakfast sandwiches!? WOW...I never would have believed it.

"Laser focused", like the heating elements we will use to warm the sausage patties...

[Vicki Verona]

he is responding to customer comments about the lack of coffee

[Melody]

I just heard him say no more warmed breakfast sandwiches by end of fiscal 2008!!! Wow!!!

Lack of coffee or lack of coffee *smell*. I can't remember the last time I walked into a SB that actually smelled like, you know, coffee.

[Laurie Ross Clements]

blah blah blah.... I hear nothing.

A sucessful leader not only listens to but seeks feedback from cutomers, employees, stockholders...

A poser just has the title - say the PC thing, and doesn't rock the boat. And if moves are made, they are out of reacting and based on fear.

What I'm reading above sounds like a poser or politican, and not like the leader I expected to return and save the day.

Maybe Howard is too rich or just uninspired to make a Starbucks comeback.
His latest moves since returning to the helm do not sound like the Howard of the 80s who passionately set out the way we think about coffee.

When I attended those early stockholder meetings held at the roasting plant, I heard a visionary passionately reveal his road map for the company and how we view coffee.
I was inspired.

Will the real Howard Schultz please come back. Starbucks needs you to rediscover your purpose and passion. Only then can you revitalize this company.

Laurie

[Elizabeth]

Too bad an oven the size of a school bus was installed into nearly every store...

[JMW]

There's more than meets the eye here, I think. Did anyone consider that maybe the reason McDonald's is going after SBUX with lattes is partly because SBUX is stepping on McD's turf with the breakfast sandwiches?

Why, one might argue as much about the combination of breakfast sandwiches and drive-thrus ... if SBUX started selling "lunch sandwiches" (aka hamburgers), it'd be all-out war.

First step when dealing with an enemy that has more than twice as much revenue and margin as you: disengage. Do not attack frontally. You will lose.

The previous strategy reeked of K-Mart's last bloody stand against Wal-Mart. All-out frontal assault. Schultz isn't making some grand decision here, he's saving the company from the brink of a deep, dark abyss.

[I Want To Believe]

JMW
Cool conspiracy theory, but McD's had a test store outside of Vancouver that tested the cafe concept around 10 years ago...

As for the "deep, dark abyss..."

* Consolidated net revenues of $2.8 billion, a 17 percent increase from Q1 of 2007
* Operating margin contracted 160 basis points to 12.0 percent
* Earnings per share of $0.28, compared to $0.26 per share in Q1 of 2007
* Comparable store sales growth of one percent

[.]

"His latest moves since returning to the helm do not sound like the Howard of the 80s who passionately set out the way we think about coffee."

True. His latest moves sound like he wants to polish the company up enough to sell it off.

[redcup]

the onion has a funny bit about starbucks closing down under performing stores

http://www.theonion.com/content/amvo/starbucks_closing_stores

[Melody]

^ Redcup, that is sort of funny. I like the one about where will I go to appear harried and rushed. There needs to be another one of "who will I yell my overly pretentious complicated drink order to?"
greenapronbook.com :)

[CoffeeMan]

Still think training is one of the major answers. I was in a SBUX yesterday that had 5 employees behind the counter. They couldn't help but run into one another. I was told that two were in training. I guess my point is to conduct more of a SBUX classroom (I remember seeing these but they have all become storerooms). Throwing someone into the fire is not a way to train someone. I know because I work in an industry that does that and is all but dead. It leads to all sorts of problems, including my number one complaint, gossip about customers that don't deserve it. Very cruel.

[exbucks]

Another message from the Java God, from high atop Mt. bean. Whatever this new "experience" will be will sound great at a press conference but will never make it out of the building. I walked away from SB after years of loyal patronage when I found out that as a customer I was used as a tool by a manager against another employee. And the manager suffered no repercussions, but the "partner/employee" did.
And corporate doesn't care to listen to the real story, whilst professing fairness to it's employees and loyalty to their customers.