If you're really honest with yourself, as I have tried to be with myself, along the way in building the company, there has been something we have lost. And it's no one's fault and there's no punishment or blame. Weare what we are — but the question is, What are we going to do about it and how are we going to fix it?
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Next, the memo summarized seven priorities: be recognized as the undisputed coffee authority; engage and inspire our partners with better training and new benefits; reignite customers’ emotional attachment to our brand; expand our stores around the world, but try to make each one feel like the heart of the local neighborhood; be a leader in ethical sourcing and environmental impact efforts; create new, relevant products to help grow revenue; operate a more efficient and profitable business model.
What distinguishes the talented person who makes it from the person who has even more talent but doesn’t get ahead? Look at the aspiring actors waiting tables in New York, as an example: Many of them are probably no less gifted than stars like Robert DeNiro and Susan Sarandon. Part of what constitutes success is timing and chance. But most of us have to create our own opportunities and be prepared to jump when we see a big one others can’t see. It’s one thing to dream, but when the moment is right, you’ve got to be willing to leave what’s familiar and go out to find your own sound. That’s what I did in 1985. If I hadn’t, Starbucks wouldn’t be what it is today.
It was during this time that Starbucks began to better understand its customers, and what they wanted was convenience in all its forms. They didn't want to wait in line for their lattes, but they also did not want to walk a few more blocks or drive an extra mile to get it. Our way to reduce wait times was to open more stores, so we grew aggressively in urban markets, too. It was not easy and required hard work, but our growth felt manageable in large part because we had developed easily adaptable store designs. We also had adept real estate experts who took time to find just the right store locations, as well as skilled regional, district, and store managers who oversaw quality.