I think Starbucks created a platform and, ultimately, a runway for many other companies to emulate. I suspect if we had not achieved what we have, there would have been many regional brands that would have succeeded. But I'm not sure there would have been a national brand of the scope of Starbucks.

If you put on a lousy production with white actors, it's lousy. There is a problem, or can be, at this stage of our social evolution, with mixing the casts. It may not be a question of race so much as class. You would rarely find a black man in a high executive position where he was swinging his weight around.

In this ever-changing society, the most powerful and enduring brands are built from the heart.

The hardest thing about being a leader is demonstrating or showing vulnerability. And that has a lot to do with trust.

You must find something that you deeply love and are passionate about and are willing to sacrifice a lot to achieve.

The premium single-cup segment is the fastest-growing business within the global coffee industry.

The issue of managing through a crisis is you have to be decisive even if you don't have perfect information.