Assignment Questions

1. When Howard Schultz launched Starbucks, who was the target market, how was Starbucks positioned and what decisions about product, price, distribution and promotion supported this positioning?
2. Wall Street and Starbucks management placed great emphasis on the company’s ability to continue its impressive growth rate. What were some of the growth initiatives undertaken by Starbucks and how did they fuel company growth?
3. It’s clear that, in general, the company’s growth initiatives were sound in terms of generating the growth expected by Wall Street. But which of Starbucks’ initiatives, in retrospect, were sound decisions for the brand and which were inconsistent with brand positioning?
4. What role should foreign expansion play in Starbucks’ strategy?
5. How should Starbucks define its target market and positioning after its decline in 2007?
6. Evaluate the actions taken to reinvigorate Starbucks.