Starbucks
Supporting a Global Product Innovation

The Challenge: Starbucks planned to launch a line of premium food products across its 8,300 stores worldwide. But with a brand so tightly connected to coffee, how could Starbucks persuade employees to endorse its foray into food?

The Solution: Anchored by an inclusive “Coffee loves company” theme, we developed an internal communications program that presented food as a logical addition to Starbucks’ core offering. By highlighting products tailored for breakfast, lunch and dessert, a vision brochure explained how the extended menu fit into the coffee retailer’s strategy to become an all-day destination. Introduced at Starbucks’ global leadership conference, the program was supported by an event environment and interactive “training” quiz.

The Result: Starbucks rallied its store managers and successfully launched the new food initiative across ten critical markets.