Starbucks and Arizona State University are partnering to form the ASU-Starbucks Center for the Future of People and the Planet—a new research facility aimed at find new ways to design, build, and operate Starbucks stores.
“Over the last several years we have been reinventing Starbucks for our future and transforming the way we drive innovation at Starbucks,” says Kevin Johnson, Starbucks ceo. “As we continuously focus on elevating the Starbucks Experience, introducing new and exciting beverage innovation, and reimagining customer experiences both in-store and through more personalized digital relationships, we constantly challenge ourselves to find new ways to give back more than we take, using our power at scale to create a better society in which we all live.”
The center is scheduled to open in December 2021 on ASU’s campus in Tempe. The ASU-Starbucks Center will be similar to the Starbucks Tryer Center, an incubation lab located at the chain’s support center in Seattle.
“ASU and Starbucks are aligned in our missions to be of complete service to the communities we serve and build a better future for both people and the planet,” say ASU President Michael M. Crow. “Through this new center, ASU will provide unique value in terms of research and transdisciplinary expertise in order to collaborate with Starbucks to develop, test and validate strategies that can ultimately be scaled to stores and communities globally.”
The center will include scientists, researchers, and support staff, including subject-matter experts from Starbucks and ASU. Initially, more than 15 faculty and staff from across the university will support the ASU-Starbucks Center activities. As the center expands, its scope and capacity will increase leveraging ASU’s broad expertise and strength in innovation.
In the first year, the center will work on greener stores, food and wellness, community betterment, and innovative test stores.
