Howard Schultz, former Starbucks CEO, retires from coffee chain's board of directors

Howard Schultz, former chief executive officer of Starbucks, is retiring from the company's board of directors, the company announced Wednesday.

Schultz, who has been with the company 41 years, moved from his native New York to Seattle in 1982 to start his job as the director of operations and marketing. As he retires from his position, he will be honored as "lifelong Chairman Emeritus," the company said.

"I am enormously blessed to have experienced this journey from the ground floor at the company these many years. I look forward to supporting this next generation of leaders to steward Starbucks into the future as a customer, supporter and advocate in my role as chairman emeritus," Schultz said.

Schultz was CEO of Starbucks from 1986 to 2000, and from 2008 to 2017. He returned as interim CEO for a third time in March 2022 and stepped down in March of this year after Laxman Narasimhan assumed the role. The company also announced the election of Wei Zhang to their board of directors. Zhang recently served as senior advisor to Alibaba Group and was president of Alibaba Pictures Group.

How did Howard Schultz change Starbucks?

While Schultz joined Starbucks in 1982, when it was only four stores, the chain grew under his leadership as did the way people consume coffee in the U.S.

In 1983, Schultz traveled to Milan, Italy and was inspired after experiencing the popular espresso bars there. He decided to test the same concept in the U.S., and after the first Starbucks Caffè Latte was served in downtown Seattle, it became a hit. The following year, Schultz actually left Starbucks to open up his own coffee shop, Il Giornale, which offered coffee and espresso beverages brewed from Starbucks coffee beans, and offered the "ritual and romance" of Milan's coffee bars.

With the help of local investors, in 1987 Il Giornale acquired Starbucks and kept the name. By the time Schultz had finished his first round as the company's CEO in 2000, there were 3,500 Starbucks stores all around the world. Currently, there are more than 35,000 Starbucks stores worldwide.

Did Starbucks violate labor laws?

In March, Schultz was called to testify before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which also found 500 pending charges of unfair labor practice against the company.

Their report found that the National Labor Relations Board also filed more than 80 complaints against the Starbucks for illegally firing employees from forming a union, bargaining for benefits, advocating for better working conditions and asking for better wages.

In their report, they said they found a pattern in which Starbucks leaders told employees they would lose tuition reimbursement, health insurance, break time, and transportation benefits if they voted to unionize.

"At Schultz’s direction, Starbucks has fought the attempts of workers every step of the way, resorting to delay tactics and significant escalation in union busting, including unlawfully firing employees, having the police called in response to a peaceful and lawful congregation of workers who were attempting to present their request for union recognition, and illegally shutting down unionized stores," according to press release by the Senate HELP Committee.

At the March hearing, Schultz testified that the company didn't break the law and that the allegations would be proven false.

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An interest in being president

Schultz wasn't always just interested in leading a coffee company. In 2019, he announced interest in running for for the 2020 presidency as a "centrist independent."

"I have met so many people who feel frustrated and ignored because the party they once proudly embraced now embraces extreme ideologies and revenge politics over sensible solutions and collaborative problem-solving. Polarization and divisiveness among Republicans and Democrats are spoiling the potential of our country, making it possible for a new choice to emerge," he said in an opinion piece published by USA TODAY.

But the unofficial bid came to an end September 2019. Citing health reasons, Schultz also expressed how "extreme voices" dominated the major political parties, making it unlikely he would win again then President Donald Trump.