There was an interesting story making the rounds over the weekend about Starbucks and the difficulty of maintaining a dominant brand position. Starbucks chairman Howard Schulz spoke — in internal company documents leaked to the media — about the difficulty of maintaining a top-quality experience in a brand that is multiplying like rabbits across the world. His thoughts are well-considered, particularly since he points the finger at himself, too. It’s interesting reading and also offers some hope to the many small, neighborhood-oriented competititors of the national coffee monolith.
