Starbucks’ frenetic SoHo location in New York City is a blur of movement and sounds on a cold winter afternoon. Grinding coffee beans rattle loudly. A stream of chilled customers sweeps through, ordering double-shot espressos and white-chocolate mochas. Every chair and table is occupied. A documentary filmmaker waiting on a client sits next to an NYU student riveted to her laptop.
The coffee retailer’s de facto founder and CEO, Howard Schultz, sits in an upholstered chair squeezed into the shop’s front corner. He’s focused and unflappable, laying out the details of the company’s remarkable recent recovery. Given his Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride of the past two years, overcoming the distractions of a chaotic Starbucks is child’s play.
“These are very emotional days,” he tells SUCCESS, leaning forward in his chair. “This has been my life’s work, as opposed to a job. I didn’t come back to save the company—I hate that description— I came back to rekindle the emotion that built it.”