A tour of Starbucks Headquarters
Over spring break 2016, I had an opportunity to visit the Starbucks headquarters — or often called Starbucks Support Center (SSC) — with several fellow students from Pacific Lutheran University. The trip was made possible by the PLU Career Connections; in collaboration with Dining & Culinary Services, and Alumni & Constituent Relations.
As a graduate student in the Master of Science in Marketing Research program, I am interested in learning how businesses create, develop, and manage their brands. When I learned about the trip to SSC, I knew that it would be an incredible learning experience. Without any hesitation, I reached out to reserve my spot. I was excited for a sneak peak behind the scenes of the brand that I love.
The day started off early at 8:00 AM. We met on the PLU campus and then traveled together to the SSC, which is located in the SODO neighborhood of Seattle. When arriving at 9:30 AM, we were greeted and welcomed by Tuan Tran, who was our tour guide for the day. He provided us with name tags and helped us check into the building.
The visit started with a welcome presentation by Tuan. He is a Starbucks Senior Business Development Manager. In his presentation, Tuan briefly shared with us some insights into different product lines and brand extensions of Starbucks. He then handed us off to another senior manager, who delivered a presentation on Starbucks’ ethical practices in coffee sourcing.
My group then went on a tour to some public areas at the SSC. It appears to be a typical corporate office with meeting rooms, common kitchens, long hallways and open space offices with cubicles next to each other. I noticed that each floor is named after a major product category offered by Starbucks, and each meeting room is named after a specific drink. The interior design is quite nice with a warm tone and cozy atmosphere. There are some Starbucks touches here and there, but not excessive.
The majority of the staff that I saw in the building were young, friendly, and quite energetic. They moved fast; traveled in pairs; and, multitasked. I also noticed that most people here traveled from floor to floor using stairs instead of elevator — thumbs up!
There is one Starbucks counter on every floor — gosh, I wish I worked here! The cafeteria is nicely decorated with the same design cues often seen at Starbucks store. There are graphics on the walls featuring Starbucks’ mission statement and core values, images of the old building of the SSC, and the first Starbucks store at Pike Place Market.
We also stopped by the coffee lab where every single Starbucks coffee is tested and developed. A coffee expert shared with us that on a typical day, he tastes between 400–700 cups of coffee. The team at coffee lab often start their day as early as 5:30 AM.
As a part of the tour, we attended a coffee workshop where we were given lessons about techniques that experts use to taste coffee — often called coffee cupping. It was fascinating to learn that coffee from different regions around the world has its own unique flavor. All factors — water, soil, heat, and growing techniques — directly determine the coffee quality and flavor.
We sampled five coffee blends: Nicaragua, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Komodo Dragon, and No. 11 Microblend. Among those blends the Ethiopia and No. 11 are rare and can only be found at Starbucks Reserve stores, fine dining restaurants, and exclusive corporate offices, such as Google or Facebook.
It was the first time in my life that I could distinguish aroma and taste of different coffees. I could describe those flavors in familiar senses such as cinnamon, vanilla, berry, or floral. I, myself, preferred the soft body and honey-sweet note of the Nicaraguan coffee.
The last part of our visit was to meet with PLU alumni who are currently working at the SSC. They are all from different departments — marketing, finance, IT, and community outreach — and have been here between four to 11 years. I enjoyed every second of the 45-minute panel but felt that it went by too fast.
I was inspired to learn that the Starbucks culture is to stay humble and look forward. In marketing areas, Starbucks Partners in marketing field are encouraged to change roles every 6–8 years to gain new perspectives. Work schedules are flexible for most employees to accommodate personal life matters. All of these insights suggest a thriving working environment, which I am attracted to be a part of.
Before we headed back home, I made a quick stop to the Coffee Gear Store to pick up some goodies. The store is small but offers some unique Starbucks merchandise that cannot be found anywhere else. There are apparel, office stationery, bags, key chains, etc. This store is open to the public and located on the 8th floor of the SSC.
The visit to SSC was a success. I learned so much in just one day. I highly encourage any student to look out for opportunities like this, as it offers tremendous value to acquire insights into a company. Meeting with current employees helps me identify the essential competencies to invest and grow.
As a last note, Tuan recommended me to try Kenya for iced-coffee.
