Howard Schultz

Howard Schultz – Life, Business & Leadership


Learn about Howard Schultz—American businessman, visionary behind Starbucks’ global expansion, and advocate for corporate responsibility. Explore his journey, leadership philosophy, and memorable quotes.

Introduction

Howard D. Schultz (born July 19, 1953) is an American entrepreneur, author, and business leader best known for transforming Starbucks from a small regional coffee bean retailer into a global coffeehouse icon.

Under Schultz’s leadership, Starbucks expanded across continents while he also pushed for a more socially conscious company that places importance on employee welfare, community, and purpose. His approach to leadership, brand, and responsibility has been widely studied and debated.

Early Life and Education

Howard Schultz was born in Brooklyn, New York, to working-class parents Fred and Elaine Schultz. His father was a truck driver, and his mother worked as a receptionist.

Schultz attended Canarsie High School, graduating in 1971. Northern Michigan University (NMU), where he graduated in 1975 with a B.A. in communications.

Career and Achievements

Before Starbucks

After college, Schultz started his career as a salesman for Xerox in New York.

In 1981, in his role at Hammarplast, he visited Starbucks (then a small Seattle-based coffee bean seller) to fulfill their filtering equipment orders. The visit sparked his interest in the company.

Joining Starbucks and Early Vision

In 1982, Schultz was hired by Starbucks as director of retail operations and marketing.

However, the original Starbucks owners were reluctant to embrace the café/espresso model fully. Schultz left and founded his own coffee business, Il Giornale, in 1985 to test the café concept independently.

Expansion, Innovation & Leadership

Under Schultz’s leadership, Starbucks went public in 1992, providing capital to fuel a rapid expansion of stores across the United States and globally. Schultz’s strategy included:

  • Building brand and experience, not just coffee shops.

  • Emphasizing employee benefits (including health care for part-time workers) as part of a mission beyond profit.

  • Embracing ethical sourcing, fair-trade practices, and social responsibility in operations.

Schultz stepped down as CEO in 2000 but remained influential.

In 2017, Schultz stepped away from daily management, though he remained engaged in the company. interim CEO again during a leadership transition.

Outside Starbucks, Schultz also served as owner of the Seattle SuperSonics (NBA) from 2001 to 2006.

Awards, Writings & Public Life

Schultz has authored several books combining memoir and management philosophy, including Pour Your Heart Into It and Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul.

He has occasionally explored political ambitions and positions—though he has declined running for president.

Personality, Leadership Style & Values

Howard Schultz is often described as deeply passionate, idealistic, and relational in his leadership. He emphasizes purpose, community, and human connection in business.

He insists that companies should not simply chase profit but should develop an emotional relationship with customers, rooted in shared values.

He also emphasizes the importance of authenticity, vulnerability, and trust—acknowledging weaknesses, sharing vision, and letting people close to him lead.

Schultz often speaks about leadership as a balance: holding high standards, being bold, but treating people fairly.

He has also expressed regret or humility in decisions—e.g. he has said the sale of the SuperSonics was among the biggest regrets of his professional life.

Famous Quotes of Howard Schultz

Here are several notable quotations that reflect Schultz’s thinking on leadership, values, risk, and purpose:

“We refuse to be bystanders, even if we do not know exactly where our actions will lead.” “When companies fail, or fail to grow, it's almost always because they don't invest in the people, the systems, and the processes they need.” “People want guidance, not rhetoric. They need to know what the plan of action is, and how it will be implemented.” “Mass advertising can help build brands, but authenticity is what makes them last. If people believe they share values with a company, they will stay loyal.” “Whatever you do, don't play it safe. Don't do things the way they've always been done. Don't try to fit the system. If you do what's expected of you, you'll never accomplish more than others expect.” “Grow with discipline. Balance intuition with rigor. Innovate around the core. Don't embrace the status quo.” “In this ever-changing society, the most powerful and enduring brands are built from the heart. They are real and sustainable.” “Work should be personal. For all of us. Not just for the artist and entrepreneur. Work should have meaning for the accountant, the construction worker, the technologist, the manager and the clerk.”

These quotes reveal recurring themes: boldness, authenticity, investing in people, purpose, and not settling for status quo.

Lessons from Howard Schultz

From Schultz’s journey and approach, we can draw several lessons:

  1. Vision + experience synergy
    Schultz’s exposure to Italian café culture combined with business acumen enabled a reimagining of Starbucks’ mission.

  2. Invest in people and culture
    Schultz believed that a company’s real competitive advantage lies in its people, values, and culture—not just its products or systems.

  3. Lead with authenticity and values
    In an age of commoditization, building brands rooted in shared values and trust creates lasting loyalty.

  4. Embrace risk and reject complacency
    Schultz encouraged not playing safe, taking paths others may not see, and refusing to settle for what’s expected.

  5. Let leadership be relational
    Good leaders share vision, trust others with responsibility, and admit they don’t always have all the answers.

  6. Purpose matters in business
    Schultz exemplifies the idea that business can be a force for social good, not merely profit maximization.

Conclusion

Howard Schultz is more than the face behind Starbucks: he is a case study of modern entrepreneurial leadership infused with purpose, conscience, and community. His journey from humble beginnings to global impact is instructive not only for business leaders but for anyone seeking to combine dreams with responsibility.

Articles by the author

I never took classic business classes in college, so I don't have the background that any of the people running large companies have.

Howard Schultz

The evolving social and digital media platforms and highly innovative and relevant payment capabilities are causing seismic changes in consumer behavior and creating equally disruptive opportunities for business.

Howard Schultz

Cutting prices or putting things on sale is not sustainable business strategy. The other side of it is that you can't cut enough costs to save your way to prosperity.

Howard Schultz

I think my whole life, because of where I came from, I had a fear of failure.

Howard Schultz

Success is best when it's shared.

Howard Schultz

We live in an age where everything is based on the short term.

Howard Schultz

I believe life is a series of near misses. A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all. It's seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future. It's seeing what other people don't see And pursuing that vision.

Howard Schultz

I was born on the other side of the tracks, in public housing in Brooklyn, New York. My dad never made more than $20,000 a year, and I grew up in a family that lost health insurance. So I was scarred at a young age with understanding what it was like to watch my parents lose access to the American dream.

Howard Schultz

Many companies today are reducing hours of full-time people to get under the minimum so they don't have to pay health care costs. I just shake my head because that's not going to build long-term value and trust with your people.

Howard Schultz

Social and digital media is a bullet train, and that bullet train is not coming home.

Howard Schultz

When I first discovered in the early 1980s the Italian espresso bars in my trip to Italy, the vision was to re-create that for America - a third place that had not existed before. Starbucks re-created that in America in our own image; a place to go other than home or work. We also created an industry that did not exist: specialty coffee.

Howard Schultz

This may sound a bit naive, but I got here by believing in big dreams.

Howard Schultz

What I would say to young entrepreneurs is there's so many moments in your life where you have these dreams, and people are trying to protect you, and they say, perhaps, friends, family, parents sometimes, they don't agree with it, they think, 'This is just too high of a hurdle.' And I don't agree with that.

Howard Schultz

I think the currency of leadership is transparency. You've got to be truthful. I don't think you should be vulnerable every day, but there are moments where you've got to share your soul and conscience with people and show them who you are, and not be afraid of it.

Howard Schultz

I think there is probably no better person to aspire to emulate than Steve Jobs and what he has done at Apple in terms of his leadership, his innovation, not settling for mediocrity.

Howard Schultz

I am concerned about any attrition in customer traffic at Starbucks, but I don't want to use the economy, commodity prices or consumer confidence as an excuse. We must maintain a value proposition to our customers as well as differentiate the Starbucks Experience. That is the key.

Howard Schultz

I think what we're lacking in society, not only in the U.S. but also around the world, is to find heroes once again and to celebrate these kind of people.

Howard Schultz

Success in the United States is not an entitlement in China. You have to go there and earn it, and earn it the right way.

Howard Schultz

We are witnessing a seismic change in consumer behavior. That change is being brought about by technology and the access people have to information.

Howard Schultz

Great companies that build an enduring brand have an emotional relationship with customers that has no barrier. And that emotional relationship is on the most important characteristic, which is trust.

Howard Schultz