Poor Farmer

The Boston based anti-poverty organization, Oxfam America, recently sent a letter to investment analysts, with a carbon copy to Starbucks’s Investor Relations department, to inform them about “a pressing dispute between Starbucks and the Government of Ethiopia” and urging them to raise the issue with company management. The following is extracted from the letter; it provides a quick synopsis of the public dispute over Ethiopia’s trademark initiative and its impact on the Starbucks brand. I think the material fits the My Starbucks Story theme , so I took the liberty of naming it accordingly. What is your Starbucks story? Email it to me at poorfarmer@gmail.com . ----------------------------- " My Starbucks Story" of Oxfam America This conflict [between Starbucks and Ethiopia over coffee trademarks] could well constitute a brand risk for Starbucks, affect employee morale, and jeopardize its relationship with key suppliers—all of which may affect long-term shareholder value. ...

~ My Starbucks Story ~ I attended the Annual Starbucks Shareholders Meeting held in Seattle on March 22, 2007. Tagline of the event, "My Starbucks Story," was repeatedly told by every performer and speaker, except the Rwandan President Paul Kagame and the former Beatle Paul McCartney who was linked via live video from London. At the start of the Q & A session, I had a chance to ask Chairman Howard Schultz and President & CEO Jim Donald two questions regarding the trademark dispute between Starbucks and Ethiopia. A day before that, I visited company headquarters and briefly conferred with senior VPs Sandra Taylor and Dub Hay; also, I met with six experts in their fields. I will soon post my observations and analyses of the information I gathered ... and that will be My Story of Starbucks. Stay tuned. ------------------- Emad Mekay Washington, United States 22 March 2007 11:59 The international advocacy group Oxfam is taking on United States coffee retailer Starbucks ...

Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle) Wednesday, March 21, 2007 On the day of its annual shareholders meeting in Seattle, Starbucks Corp. has been targeted by a Boston-based nonprofit that's working to help Ethiopian coffee farmers trademark their coffees. In full-page ads Wednesday in The Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Oxfam America of Boston said Seattle coffee giant Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) "refuses to sign an agreement recognizing Ethiopia's ownership of the trademarks of the country's coffees." Oxfam says it's working with the farmers to obtain trademarks of famous Ethiopian coffees, including Sidamo, Harar and Yirgacheffe. Obtaining the trademarks, Oxfam officials said, would give "farmers a greater share of the retail value of their coffees." "If Starbucks is seriously committed to humanity, it needs to change its position and agree to negotiate a licensing agreement with Ethiopia that respects its ownership of its u...

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Starbucks said on Wednesday it remained in talks with the Ethiopian government to settle a dispute over the trademarking of the nation's coffee beans. "We had two meetings with the Ethiopian government and we are now in fruitful discussions with them," said Starbucks Chief Executive Jim Donald. "This is a complex issue." Starbucks advocates a regional certification program to assure the quality and origin of the coffee beans. It has also called for a transparent system that shows the money is going back to impoverished farmers. Though Starbucks said last month that it would not oppose Ethiopia's efforts to trademark its Sidamo and Harar coffees, for instance, coffee farmers and exporters last week accused the company of using delaying tactics. In theory, trademark agreements would bolster incomes for Ethiopia's farmers by allowing the country to negotiate purchasing conditions for coffee roasters or retailers who want to use the names...

By Associated Press Mar 21, 2007 SEATTLE (AP) - Starbucks Corp. doesn't plan to slow its aggressive growth, despite recently publicized worries about weakening the coffeehouse titan's brand, Chairman Howard Schultz told investors Wednesday. Starbucks, which has more than 13,500 stores worldwide, plans to add 10,000 more on its way to doubling in size over the next four to five years, Schultz announced at the company's annual shareholders meeting. Company leaders reiterated financial targets for 2007 and reinforced a long-term commitment to 40,000 stores worldwide, half of them outside the U.S. Wednesday's meeting also featured two special appearances: Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who praised Starbucks' efforts to help coffee farmers, and former Beatle Paul McCartney, who was introduced as the first artist signed to Starbucks' new record label. Schultz, who lamented a nearly 10 percent slide in the company's stock in the past year, asked shareholders not to...

Here is a balanced, well researched report from the Seattle PI. Please visit the paper by clicking here . Coming up is a report on my express visit to Starbucks headquarters today; I had the pleasure of meeting with two Starbucks senior Vice Presidents and six other experts and Directors - all within one hour. ---------- By CRAIG HARRIS P-I REPORTER March 20, 2007 Like other investors in Starbucks Corp., Elizabeth Moon hasn't been thrilled with the company's traditionally high-flying stock taking a considerable slide this year. Yet the retired Seattle insurance adjuster views the 11 percent drop since the end of 2006 as a blip in the road and says she's looking forward to today's annual meeting in McCaw Hall. "The stock has gone up the past couple three days, and that is good, because we had a down trend for a while," said Moon, whose investment in the past six years has increased more than 200 percent. "But I think it's a well-run company and one of...

In their report, " Justice from Bean to Cup," IWW Starbucks Workers Union ask, " Can Starbucks provide "an uplifting experience that enriches people's lives one moment, one human being, one extraordinary cup of coffee at a time" when its farmers' families are starving, and its baristas require public assistance?" The Union and their supporter along with supporters of the Ethiopian farmers are preparing to hold protests during Starbucks Annual Meeting of Shareholders . As part of their call for protest, Union leaders held a Press Conference at Labor Temple today. The following is extracted from the booklet "Starbucks 2006 Corporate IRRESPONSIBILITY Report," which they say will be distributed to participants of the Annual Shareholders Meeting. The full text (.pdf) is found here. --------------- Starbucks 2006 IRRESPONSIBILITY Report JUSTICE--fairness to all parties, as dictated by reason and conscience... Can Starbucks provide "an up...