According to Valleywag.com:

1. Richer espresso mix. Starbucks espresso machines have been recalibrated to mix a stronger dose. It’s not as powerful as Peet’s, but it’s more in that direction. My daily triple-shot tastes a lot thicker.
2. Shot glasses. Instead of pouring directly into your cup, all shots are now dispensed into clear glass shot glasses. The barista must visually approve the shot before pouring it into a cup. This not only checks the mix, it prevents stale, crema-free shots from being served after lying around too long.
3. Smaller steamer pitchers. No more giant tub-o-foam, but rather smaller batches of steamed milk and foam more tailored and fresh to each order.

Glad to hear that these things are being worked on as the large pitchers and stale shots are my two HUGE pet peaves of a bad drink at Starbucks.

Think these will make a difference? I do.

Hopefully this doesn’t become the norm with the new 2 hours of free wi-fi rolling out soon.

Hat tip: Gizmodo

I personally think that books are the best media tie-in promotion that Starbucks runs. Movies and music I am sure work, but the books seem to just take the nation by storm when promoted by Starbucks.

Also, Juno will be arriving in Starbucks stores in Mid April as a heavily promoted movie. A good fit in my opinion.

Do you like the books that Starbucks promotes? Are they that good that they shoot up the charts on their own, or is it because of Starbucks promoting them.

Seattle PI Story

Was I told no by Starbucks? Sure seems like I was.

So will it be annoying, or will they go about it in some unique ways. Corporate sales anyone?

The promotion comes from a “leaked memo” that Howard sent out to all employees earlier today. The entire memo is after the jump

February 4, 2008

What I Know to be True

Dear partners,

As I sit down to write this note (6:30 a.m. Sunday morning) I am enjoying a spectacular cup of Sumatra, brewed my favorite way — in a French press. It has been three weeks since I returned to my role as ceo of the company I love. We have made much progress as we begin to transform and innovate and there is much more to come. But this is not a sprint — it is a marathon — it always has been. I assure you that when all is said and done, we will, as we always have, succeed at our highest potential. We will not be deterred from our course — we are and will be a great, enduring company, known for inspiring and nurturing the human spirit.

During this time, I have heard from so many of you; in fact, I have received more than 2,000 emails. I can feel your passion and commitment to the company, to our customers and to one another. I also thank you for all your ideas and suggestions … keep them coming. No one knows our business and our customers better than you. I have visited with you in many of your stores, as well as stopping by to see what our competitors are doing as well.

It’s been just a few days since my last communications to you, but I wanted to share with you what I know to be true:

Since 1971, we have been ethically sourcing and roasting the highest quality Arabica coffee in the world, and today there is not a coffee company on earth providing higher quality coffee to their customers than we are. Period!
We are in the people business and always have been. What does that mean? It means you make the difference. You are the Starbucks brand. We succeed in the marketplace and distinguish ourselves by each and every partner embracing the values, guiding principles and culture of our company and bringing it to life one customer at a time.
Our stores have become the Third Place in our communities — a destination where human connections happen tens of thousands of times a day. We are not in the coffee business serving people. We are in the people business serving coffee. You are the best people serving the best coffee and I am proud to be your partner. There is no other place I would rather be than with you right here, right now!

We have a renewed clarity of purpose and we are laser-focused on the customer experience. We have returned to our core to reaffirm our coffee authority and we will have some fun doing it. We are not going to embrace the status quo. Instead, we will be curious, bold and innovative in our actions and, in doing so, we will exceed the expectation of our customers.
There will be cynics and critics along the way, all of whom will have an opinion and a point of view. This is not about them or our competitors, although we must humbly respect the changing landscape and the many choices facing every consumer. We will be steadfast in our approach and in our commitment to the Starbucks Experience — what we know to be true. However, this is about us and our customers. We are in control of our destiny. Trust the coffee and trust one another.
I will lead us back to the place where we belong, but I need your help and support every step of the way. My expectations of you are high, but higher of myself.
I want to hear from you. I want to hear about your ideas, your wins, your concerns, and how we can collectively continue to improve. Please feel free to reach out to me. I have been flooded with emails, but believe me, I am reading and responding to all of them.
As I said, I am proud to be your partner. I know this to be true.

Onward…Howard

P.S. Everything that we do, from this point on (from the most simple and basic), matters. Master the fundamentals. Experience Starbucks.

Seattle PI article

Again, I think it’s a reasonable level for the work that he did. Not saying he did a great job in the last year, but at least he isn’t being given a bloated severance package.

Seattle PI Story

Anybody else have these lids? Am I the only one that thinks they look and feel way to cheap for Starbucks? I guess they’re having to compete with McDonalds across the board now huh?

The person I was there with and myself tried two different flavors (Arabian Mocha Sanani and Aged Sumatra) and were very impressed. They measure out the beans, grind the beans, put it into the machine, which has some cool features while it’s pressing the coffee, and then served up delicious roasted coffee. It was pretty close to a french press, and I could definitely see myself ordering it again.

The whole process definitely took a few minutes though, so I think this is something that Howard is a bigger fan of than Jim Donald would have been. It’s getting back to delicious fresh coffee, but the inefficiency of the whole store would be hurt if these were ordered during a rush. It also cost more than $3 for a grande, which seems steep for roasted coffee, but they have to make up for the time it takes and the new machine somehow.

They’re testing them in the Upper Queen Anne Starbucks as well as the one downtown at 6th and Union in Seattle. Have you had a Clover? What were your thoughts? Would you buy it consistently at the price?

What I wonder is, will this be a Starbucks chocolate bar or will it be a set of chocolates sold inside Starbucks. If it is a line of chocolate to be sold inside of Starbucks stores I am very surprised by this move. With Starbucks trying to create a much better experience I would be surprised if they had branded chocolate inside their store that was not from a small botique chocolate maker. I know of two chocolate companies just in Seattle that I think would be the perfect fit for selling at the register in a Starbucks. However, a Hershey’s and Starbucks branded chocolate bar being sold at your local grocery store makes alot of sense to me, and I really hope that is the direction this partnership is going.

Reuters Article

I’m really happy to see something like this with a large publicly traded company. I feel that these execs deserve the huge paycheck they receive, as long as they are delivering to the shareholders. In an age where Robert Nardelli drives Home Depot’s stock into the ground and he’s rewarded with a $210M severance package as well as many other similar examples, it good to see that Starbucks execs compensation is actually tied to their performance.

Seattle Times Article