Starbucks

Part of the “Corporations That Changed the World” series, this well-researched book from Bussing (emerita, economics, Univ. of Southern Indiana; Profit from the Evening News) covers Starbucks from its 1971 founding as a gourmet coffee bean seller through spring 2021. The title, in its second edition, updates statistics and data and touches on new topics such as digital innovations, Starbucks’ expanding to reach new countries, and shifts in food delivery. Ten chapters discuss history, coffee blend development, technology, social impact, financial results; executive leadership, management changes, and corporate strategy; coffee competition, controversies, and future planning (through 2030). While Bussing emphasizes Starbucks’ history and past and current business practices, there is a little discussion about coffee as an agricultural crop and commodity. Despite the occasional self-serving-sounding statement, Bussing’s primarily impartial view divulges positives and negatives from the company’s origins and history to controversies (labor unions, straws, Ethos water, store closings, layoffs, COVID), business plan developments, outlook, and future. While numerous other books on Starbucks are available, this title discusses its business strategies and those strategies’ influence over people’s lives. Reference features include a general Starbucks business time line, a Starbucks controversy time line, a glossary, a bibliography, acronyms, and a current resources directory of Starbucks-specific and general coffee resources. While the detailed index makes access a breeze, the book reads more like a treatise than a reference work.