Coffee has become an important part of American culture, and many people go to Starbucks for their daily cup. It's so popular that some cities even have Starbucks stores across the street from each other!
But in the late 20th century, many Americans were drinking instant coffee.
Gerald Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, who all attended the University of San Francisco together, wanted to change that.
The three men were inspired by Alfred Peet, who had opened a small coffee shop in Berkeley, California, in 1966. He got his coffee from overseas, and roasted his own beans.
Peet taught Baldwin, Siegl and Bowker his roasting style, and in 1971, they opened the first Starbucks store in Seattle, named after the character Starbuck in Herman Melville's book Moby Dick. According to the company's website, this — like the company's mermaid logo — refers to the seafaring tradition of early coffee traders.
At first, Starbucks sold high-quality coffee beans, supplied by Peet, and coffee equipment. The founders opened four stores in Seattle over the next decade, with Siegl leaving the company in 1980.
In 1982, Howard Schultz — who managed one of Starbucks' suppliers — joined the company.
After experiencing coffeehouses in Milan, Italy, in 1983, Schultz became inspired to bring European coffee-drinking culture to the US.
But Baldwin and Bowker weren't convinced, so Schultz left Starbucks and opened a coffeehouse called Il Giornale.
It was immediately successful, and when Baldwin and Bowker decided to sell Starbucks in 1987, Schultz had enough money and investors to buy it.
Within four years, there were over 100 Starbucks coffeehouses around the US. In 1996, the company began opening stores outside North America, starting with Japan.
Today, according to its website, Starbucks has over 32,000 stores in 80 countries, making it the largest coffeehouse chain in the world.
