Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouse and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker at Seattle’s Pike Place Market initially as a coffee bean wholesaler. Starbucks was converted into a coffee shop serving espresso-based drinks under the ownership of Howard Schultz, who was chief executive officer from 1986 to 2000 and led the aggressive expansion of the franchise across the West Coast of the United States.
Products
COFFEE CUP SIZES
| Name | Measurement | Notes |
| Short | 8 US fl oz (237 mL) | Smaller of the two original sizes Only available for hot drinks |
| Tall | 12 US fl oz (355 mL) | Larger of the two original sizes |
| Grande | 16 US fl oz (473 mL) | Italian for “large” |
| Venti | 20 US fl oz (591 mL) – Hot 26 US fl oz (770 mL) – Iced | Italian for “twenty” |
| Trenta | 30 US fl oz (887 mL) | Italian for “thirty” Only available for certain cold drinks including iced teas, Refreshers, and cold brew. |
Low Calorie and Sugar Free products
In January 2008, Starbucks began a “skinny” line of drinks, offering lower-calorie and sugar-free versions of the company’s offered drinks that use skim milk, and can be sweetened by a choice of natural sweeteners (such as raw sugar, agave syrup, or honey), artificial sweeteners (such as Sweet’ N Low, Splenda, Equal), or one of the company’s sugar-free syrup flavors
Starbucks Card and Loyalty Program
In May 2008, a loyalty program was introduced for registered users of the Starbucks Card (previously simply a gift card) offering perks such as free Wi-Fi Internet access, no charge for soy milk and flavored syrups, and free refills on brewed drip coffee, iced coffee, or tea. Each time a customer purchases a drink, they will earn stars if they present their rewards card or scan their card from the mobile app. Eventually, these stars accumulate to allow customers to redeem for perks such as free drinks, free add-ins, free bakery items or selected merchandise.
In 2009, Starbucks began beta testing its mobile app for the Starbucks card, a stored value system in which consumers access pre-paid funds to purchase products at Starbucks. Starbucks released its complete mobile platform in January 2011. By December 2011, the number of mobile transactions exceeded 26 million.