Welcome 2008!

Good morning... What can I get for you?

How about the story behind the story? Before I get into that though, I'd like to share a story I was just thinking about. During my time at the SSC, I went back to one of my "loves"... competitive rowing. I found a local Masters club and jumped in the boat with them. There were only about six of us men, so we always had a couple of women filling in... and they were more than capable... they just weren't men... and in a "Men's" boat, you need all men.

Over time, we acquired a couple of guys and our boat was complete. Now, we weren't all the same size or shape... even our strengths were different. We kept at it... soon, things were clicking... We had some great practices. Then, racing season came... and we were on fire. We couldn't lose. Our times were national class... Then, one guy had to go back home to Australia... and another got married... We filled the spots, but it was never the same... we were never as fast again.

I look back on that year and really cherish the time I had with those 7 other guys and that one female coxswain... I knew it would never be like that again. It might be fun, we might be fast again... but it'll never be the same.

Why do I tell you this? To give you perspective for this next bit...

I had some great years at Starbucks. It was great when I started... when we hit 200 stores... when we opened Japan... when I got to be a store manager... when we hit 2000 stores in 1999... working in the SSC... and finally leaving. It'll never be like it was yesterday... and that's a good thing... as long as you never forget that a "different better" is around the corner.

Thanks for coming along on this ride with me. I can tell you now that this was all an experiment. An experiment to challenge myself...

• To write down some great memories
• To build the thing I wanted to build while at Starbucks
• To build an audience
• To collect some feedback
• To learn
• To cap off the last 15 years

So, what's next?? I'll do a bit more writing... visit the forum to chat with you all and share... and use my 4:00am to 5:00am hour to ride my bike.

Thanks for your attention and encouragement...


We'll see you sometime for your usual...








partner, customer, shareholder and fan...