SEATTLE, September 02, 2010 - Seattle’s Best Coffee, part of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX), today announced that it has reached a major milestone in the strategic plan it outlined earlier this year, achieving its goal of establishing 30,000 places where consumers can enjoy a freshly-brewed cup of Seattle’s Best Coffee®. The milestone represents a ten-fold increase since March and reflects a diverse channel approach including company-operated stores, franchised locations, relationships with leading retail and restaurant chains, and food service locations.

 

Starbucks announced its next mobile move for the Starbucks Card program with the introduction of the Starbucks Card Mobile App for BlackBerry® smartphones on Sept. 2. This marks the first platform expansion since the introduction of the app for iPhone and iPod touch last September. Customer interest in Starbucks mobile applications combined with feedback on My Starbucks Idea drove the decision to bring the Starbucks Mobile Card to a variety of BlackBerry smartphones including the BlackBerry® Curve™ series, BlackBerry® Storm™ series and BlackBerry® Tour to strengthen Starbucks mobile connection with customers. 

 

SEATTLE, August 30, 2010 - Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) announced today the next step in building the instant coffee category with the introduction of Starbucks VIA® Flavored Coffee in U.S. and Canada stores this fall. Just one year since the launch, the Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew portfolio will now include four natural flavors—Vanilla, Mocha, Caramel and Cinnamon Spice. Starbucks is the first nationally branded flavored coffee in the U.S. to use only natural flavors and other natural ingredients and currently offers Starbucks® Natural Fusions, a line of naturally flavored ground coffees, at select grocery stores in the U.S.

“We know 60 percent of our customers drink coffee with flavor, and now they will have access to high-quality arabica coffees with natural flavors as only Starbucks can deliver,” said Annie Young-Scrivner, Starbucks chief marketing officer. “The launch of Starbucks VIA® Flavored Coffees demonstrates our drive to inject innovation into the coffee category, deliver products our customers are looking for, and allows us to grow the business globally.”

 

NEW ORLEANS – August 25, 2010 – When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in 2005, Starbucks committed $5 million over a five-year period to help rebuild communities in the Greater New Orleans area. Next month, $100,000 of this commitment will be distributed to local non-profit organizations through an in-store program called Vote, Give, Grow. Starbucks created the program to involve its partners (employees) and customers in the company’s neighborhood improvement efforts, and to increase awareness of the need for ongoing support.

From September 1-27, customers who make any purchase in one of 21 participating Starbucks stores in the Greater New Orleans area will receive a token that they can drop into a voting bank to show support for their favorite cause. Customers can vote for one of three partner-selected beneficiaries: Young Leadership Council, which engages young professionals in community projects; KaBOOM!, whose mission is to create play spaces within walking distance of every child in America; and Hike for KaTREEna, whose aim is to replant trees that were lost during the disaster. The organization with the most votes will receive a $50,000 grant, and the runners-up will each receive $25,000 grants.

 

SAO PAULO, August 19, 2010 - Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) announced today that it has assumed 100 percent ownership and operating control of Starbucks Brazil through the acquisition of Cafés Sereia do Brasil Participações S.A. Converting the market to a company-operated business allows Starbucks to focus on the enormous opportunity in Brazil through pursuing thoughtful growth while continuing to deliver unparalleled customer experience in the largest consumer market in South America.

 

SEATTLE, August 17, 2010 - Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) today announced that the Philippines will be the fourth market to offer Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew. Starting mid-September, all Starbucks stores in the Philippines will carry Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew in Colombia, Italian Roast and Decaffeinated Italian Roast.

“We know there is a significant opportunity in the Philippines marketplace for Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew since nearly 100 percent of retail coffee sales come from instant coffee*,” said Howard Schultz, chairman, president and ceo, Starbucks Coffee Company. “We know rapid innovation for Starbucks VIA® and creating opportunities to further increase awareness and trial of Starbucks VIA® broadens our overall customer base both in the U.S. and in international markets.”

Starbucks opened its first store in Makati City, Philippines through a licensing agreement with Rustan Coffee Corporation in December 1997. Today, there are more than 160 stores throughout the Philippines, and Starbucks growth has played a key role in building a strong local coffee culture in the country.

 

SEATTLE, August 17, 2010 - Over the course of Starbucks 40-year history in the specialty coffee business, the company has consistently sourced the highest-quality coffee from all over the world. With that deep expertise in managing the fluctuations of green coffee prices in the “C” market, we have also maintained the highest ethical sourcing standards in the industry, with positive results. For many years Starbucks has diversified its coffee procurement into multiple coffee growing regions, and we remain confident in our ability to manage this dynamic effectively for our customers while continuing to build and maintain long-term value for shareholders.

Therefore, despite recent spikes in the “C” market, we are reaffirming the outlook we provided in our third-quarter earnings call July 21, 2010: We expect fiscal 2011 earnings per share to be in the range of $1.36-$1.41. We expect to absorb approximately 4 cents per share in additional commodity costs in fiscal 2011, primarily related to higher coffee prices, but also reflecting our ability to effectively mitigate a portion of the relative short-term fluctuations inherent in today’s coffee market.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements relating to trends in or expectations regarding, earnings per share and commodity costs. These forward-looking statements are based on currently available operating, financial and competitive information and are subject to a number of significant risks and uncertainties. Actual future results may differ materially depending on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, coffee, dairy and other raw material prices and availability, successful execution of the company’s initiatives, fluctuations in U.S. and international economies and currencies, the impact of competition, the effect of legal proceedings, and other risks detailed in the company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the “Risk Factors” section of Starbucks Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 27, 2009. The company assumes no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements.

Introducing Starbucks Reserve™ - one of the world’s rarest, most exotic and flavorful coffees. Starbucks is now offering customers a special opportunity to experience some of the most sophisticated coffees the world has to offer with the introduction of a premium, single-origin coffee line.

Galápagos San Cristóbal, the first coffee to debut under the Starbucks Reserve™ coffee line, is a rare coffee from the unique subtropical climate in the Galápagos Islands that produces a limited amount of coffee each year.
 

SEATTLE, August 16, 2010 - Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) today announced the launch of Starbucks Reserve™, a line of ultra-premium, single-origin coffees available in select U.S. stores this fall. Chosen by Starbucks coffee buyers for their unique flavors and rarity, Starbucks Reserve™ coffees will be offered in limited quantities and while supplies last in select stores within metropolitan markets including New York City, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Boston, Seattle, Portland, Ore., Chicago, Dallas, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Miami.

 

SEATTLE, August 16, 2010 - Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq: SBUX) has been voted as No. 1 Best Coffee in the Fast Food and Quick Refreshment categories and as the No. 1 Most Popular Quick Refreshment Chain in Zagat’s 2010 Survey of National Chain Restaurants released today. More than 6,500 surveyors participated in Zagat’s online survey, and this is the second year surveyors have awarded Starbucks the top honor.

Besides having the best coffee among all quick service chains in the list, including Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonald’s, Peet’s Coffee & Tea, and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Starbucks was voted as the Most Popular among the 25 chains included in the Quick Refreshment category.