Starbucks International CEO Brady Brewer on celebrating 25 years in South Korea, focusing on global expansion, and doing so by building a more connected society.
Brady Brewer is a name so aptly fitting for a senior leadership position at Starbucks that some may even suggest it were fate. But Brewer’s passion and steadfast commitment to upholding Starbucks’ mission have seen him appointed International CEO on his own accord, in a newly created role to advance the company’s long-term plan for sustainable growth.
Known as the Triple Shot with Two Pumps Reinvention Strategy, this pillar includes elevating the Starbucks brand, strengthening digital capabilities, and being ‘truly global’. While some may attest the international roaster already is, for Brewer, it means unlocking efficiency and reinvigorating partner culture at an accelerated rate.
“In the next year, our goal is that three out of four new store openings will be outside the United States (US), as we move towards our aspiration of growing to 55,000 stores globally, so there is a significant focus on becoming truly global as a company,” Brewer tells Global Coffee Report.
For the first 90 days in Brewer’s new role, he listened to and learned from Starbucks partners around the world, hearing their stories and how the coffee giant has offered them a place of belonging.
“Their stories reinforce the belief that this work is impactful to not just our partners, but our communities and our customers,” Brewer says.
“I am honoured to be working alongside such a deep bench of talent on the international team and am excited to see what we can accomplish with a renewed focus on customer experience.
“We all seek meaning in our work and, after almost 23 years, I still find it every day at Starbucks.”
Brewer’s career progression at Starbucks is a time line of growth. He first joined Starbucks in 2001 as a Marketing Manager because he genuinely believed in the company’s mission, which although has evolved, is about building connections and doing good in the community – for Starbucks’ partners and the environment.
“I want to focus on one word: community. The community we talk about at Starbucks isn’t just where you live, or who your family are, but also your identity. With our mission, we want our partners, customers, and stakeholders to know every identity can find connection and a place of belonging within the Starbucks community,”
Brewer says.
“There is an epidemic of isolation and loneliness around the world and we see people are feeling more disconnected and further apart. I believe in the power of connection through coffee. At Starbucks, we work to create a Third Place (the place in between home and workplace) for our communities to connect and for our partners to feel a sense of belonging. Starbucks, alongside the entire coffee industry, has the power to help build a more connected society. That may seem lofty, but it’s real.”
Like Starbucks, Brewer is a Seattle native, with the appreciation for coffee and coffee culture engrained in the DNA of those from the Pacific Northwest. Over Brewer’s almost 23 years working at Starbucks, his understanding of the bean-to-cup coffee journey has been strengthened by visiting the farms Starbucks sources from, working behind the bar in stores, and immersing in everything in between. In his office, Brewer keeps several photos of a farm he visited in Sumatra to remind himself of the producers who grow Starbucks coffee, and their commitment to the craft.
South Korea calling
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Starbucks opening in South Korea. At a time when Starbucks was looking for the perfect fit for the company’s growing international footprint, South Korea made sense due to the country’s strong affinity for coffee drinking in beautiful spaces. It’s loyalty to Starbucks has never wavered. South Korea has become Starbucks’ fourth largest market by store count with 1919 stores to date in 81 cities, surpassed only by the US, China, and Japan.
“Starbucks was among the first international coffee companies that introduced South Koreans to a new style of café culture,” Brewer says. “Starbucks has played a part in revolutionising South Korea’s café culture, introducing the Third Place concept and turning coffee shops into places to work, study, socialise, and network.”
Today, Brewer says Seoul is among one of the cities with the highest density of premium coffee shops per 1000 people in the world, with one of the highest number of Starbucks in one city. According to Boston Consulting Group research, South Koreans in particular have the highest coffee penetration in the Asia Pacific at approximately 91 per cent.
South Korea has also been a country of Starbucks firsts. In 2014, it launched Starbucks’ mobile ordering and pickup system, known as the Siren Order, which is still used by Starbucks customers today. Learnings from South Korea have influenced different mobile ordering systems and user interfaces globally.
The roaster is passionate about nurturing the potential of its Korean partners. Starbucks recently celebrated the graduation of 46 partners who earned their bachelor’s degrees as part of the Starbucks Korea College Achievement Plan. Since its inception in 2016, more than 400 partners have graduated from the program.
Starbucks Community Stores have also expanded, with eight dedicated intentional spaces creating pathways and opportunities for youth empowerment. It includes Starbucks’ largest Community Store in Seoul, Jongno R, covering more than 1000 square meters; Kyungdong 1960, the restoration of the long-standing Kyungdong Market store; and the Seoul National University Dental Hospital Community Store. This inclusively designed store focuses on expanding career opportunities for Starbucks partners with disabilities.
“Starbucks Korea’s commitment to creating opportunities through its eight Community Stores, supporting causes from inclusion to youth employment and community development has endeared the brand to the market. Collectively, these Community Stores have contributed over KRW4.2 billion (about US$3 million), demonstrating Starbucks Korea’s commitment to empowering the local community,” Brewer says.
Beyond Starbucks’ Community Stores, the market partners with local government bodies to support 14 neighbourhood cafés, owned and operated by local welfare centres and non-profits. Starbucks provides barista training, supports beverage creation, and the construction of the stores.
The roadmap ahead
Under the fourth strategic pillar of Starbucks’ Reinvention Strategy, the company is focused on unlocking efficiencies both in and out of stores, with the goal to generate US$3 billion in savings over three years, and US$2 billion outside the store.
“Our stores are running better than ever before, and our strategy has continued to unlock meaningful efficiencies and reductions in product and distribution costs, driven by supply chain improvements in procurement, transportation, and sourcing. We’re doing this while making the job more rewarding for our partners,” Brewer says.
“We are actively focused on enhancing operational throughput by equipping our partners with the right processes and tools. For instance, in our US stores, we have invested in equipment innovation, process improvements, staffing, scheduling, and waste reduction initiatives. This improved operating foundation is helping stores to run more smoothly.”
In the US, Brewer says Starbucks is enhancing its ability to meet peak demand periods, including mornings, weekends, and unmet overnight demand. Its goal is to maximise this potential through new product offerings, strategic collaborations, targeted marketing, and improvements to the in-store experience. Additionally, it will introduce more relevant rewards and new products for US customers, while maintaining its focus on core coffee-forward offerings.
Meanwhile, Starbucks’ international business, which includes Asia Pacific, Japan, Latin America, and Europe, the Middle East and Africa, under Brewer, remains an important part of its long-term growth strategy.
“We see many bright spots in the road ahead in our long-term international growth strategy. Our ability to develop new stores is a core strength of our business, and our focus on locally relevant product innovations in our markets positions us for continued growth,” Brewer says.
“We have recently expanded to Honduras and Ecuador, and along a continuous path of growth, our global footprint is expanding to more than 39,000 stores across 88 markets today, putting us well on the path to 55,000 stores by 2030.”
To get there, Brewer says the company will continue to transform, customise, and innovate while remaining locally relevant to the communities it serves – a strategy that’s served the roaster well throughout its nearly 30-year history in 84 international markets, with more than 20,000 stores outside of North America.
“Emerging markets present a significant opportunity. Today, Starbucks is only 19 per cent penetrated with an over 10,000-store long-term capacity in the markets of India, Southeast Asia, and Latin America,” Brewer says.
“Our business is a human-connection business, and industry knowledge and market expertise has been a key factor in bringing the ‘Starbucks Experience’ to markets globally in a way that honours the regional heritage, upholds Starbucks’ mission, and delivers an elevated experience to our partners and our customers.”
For each new market Starbucks enters, success is measured on the strength of long-term partnerships with licensed business operators, which represent more than 50 per cent of Starbucks’ international portfolio. Starbucks currently has 27 licensed business operators across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa; and Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Caribbean (LAC).
Past meets present
Starbucks started as a small shop in Seattle selling whole bean coffee. It is now a global company selling hand-crafted beverages to international customers. Unique beverage innovations account for 85 per cent of net beverage sales. For instance, Starbucks offers a Sakura Frappuccino and honeydew melon-flavoured beverages in Japan, a dulce de leche line of beverages in LAC, and this past year Starbucks China introduced Starbucks Espresso Intenso, a coffee-forward platform created just for China.
“Innovation is the future – whether that’s at the first 10 feet finding sustainable agricultural practices to ensure the future of coffee for all, at the roastery in Milan with elevated coffee blends roasted in two distinct ways such as our newly launched Milano Duetto, or in stores where our customers are telling us they want seasonal drinks inspired by beverages from around the world, like our popular Summer Berry Refreshers,” Brewer says.
Equally, he says the most pivotal moments in Starbucks history have resulted from listening to its partners and making big changes. This includes offering healthcare to part-time partners in the 1980s, opening Starbucks’ first store outside of North American in Japan in 1996, and launching Starbucks College Achievement Plans in the US in 2014 and in South Korea in 2016.
Brewer adds, however, that what got Starbucks to where it is today, is not going to get it to where it needs to go. “It will take creativity and ingenuity to get us there. I am confident we have the assets in place to accomplish anything – the team, the brand strength, and the loyal customers,” Brewer says.
Going forward, he says the company will be committed to innovating in locally relevant ways, improving the digital experience of customers, and building stores and formats that meet community needs.
“We do all of this while remaining fiercely attached to our authenticity and steeped in our mission, values, and promises. For example, we recently announced the certification of our 6000th Greener Store, which is a significant achievement and a demonstration of our environmental promise in action. In fact, all new stores in certain markets, like those in Latin America, will be built in the Greener Stores framework going forward,” Brewer says.
“This shows how, as we’ve grown, we’ve used our scale for good – Starbucks is a global company and that means we have global impact in the work we do.”
The longevity of Starbucks as a 53-year-old company and an internationally loved brand starts with its partners, and a commitment to exceed their expectations and needs. Each day, Starbucks partners connect with customers and craft inspired beverages. Partner culture is steeped in Starbucks’ mission and collective values of craft, results, courage, belonging, and joy.
“Building on this, our worldwide brand remains resilient and strong, and our leadership in coffee is unmatched. We are a brand known for the premium value we provide. A key pillar of our strategy is to elevate our brand, and we do this by driving compelling product innovation, building great stores, and operating great stores,” he says.
“At Starbucks, our possibilities as a company are limitless and we are relentlessly focused on uplifting our customers, contributing positively to our communities, and serving as a bridge to a better future for our partners.
“Our partners and team members are at the heart of our business, and we all play a role in building the Starbucks legacy.”
For Brewer, that personal contribution will come through elevating the good work of the people on his team and throughout the organisation.
“Their commitment to our promises and to doing good in the world is unparalleled,” he says. “My job is to empower our partners to be their best, then get out of the way. Starbucks is in good hands, and mine are just two of them.”
This article was first published in the July/August 2024 edition of Global Coffee Report. Read more HERE.
