People & Impact

Customers are responding to Starbucks emphasis on an exceptional cup of coffee, human connection and a great customer experience — and the business’s performance is as well.

The 2026 championship journey features evolving challenges, including latte art and service excellence, with finalists advancing to Seattle for a National Coffee Day showdown.

From music, sports, fashion and film to holiday rituals and everyday moments of inspiration, Starbucks has evolved alongside culture – and helped shape it.

For nearly three decades, the Starbucks Hot Java Cool Jazz benefit concert has showcased talented young musicians in the Seattle area while raising more than $1.4 million for high school music programs.

More than 60% of U.S. households can now recycle cold to-go cups curbside

No matter what’s happening in the world or what hardships people face, every day in coffeehouses around the world, partners create moments of joy, comfort, connection and meaning for customers and each other.

Josiah Varghese, a Starbucks barista, and Juliana Galofre, a longtime customer, were chosen from nearly 1,800 applicants to spend the next year traveling around the world to unique Starbucks locations to tell stories about coffee, craft and connection on social media.

Your morning ritual of drinking coffee is easy to take for granted, but in some areas, farmers may not be able to grow arabica coffee in as soon as 10 years. Starbucks agronomists are fighting to change that.