Photos: Highlights of Starbucks 2019 Annual Meeting

By Joshua Trujillo • March 21, 2019 • 3 min read

Coffee is brewed for guests on a siphon during the Starbucks Annual Meeting of Shareholders.

The first Starbucks Annual Meeting of Shareholders in 1993 was just a small gathering in a downtown Seattle hotel conference room, with a slide presentation and stack of tri-fold brochures. On March 20, 2019, the event drew a crowd of thousands to WaMu Theater in downtown Seattle where guests could rake coffee in a simulated drying patio, immerse in video playing on screens from coffee farms and sample some of Starbucks latest beverages and food. Here is a visual summary of the event as captured by Starbucks Stories.

guests rake coffee
Raking is the method used to rotate coffee as it dries on patios in some coffee growing regions. Guests at the shareholders meeting were able to try their hand at turning the coffee.

The Annual Meeting of Shareholders featured Starbucks leaders offering updates on the business and future initiatives as well as goals, stories, films and, of course, a special musical guest.

A video opens the Starbucks Annual Meeting of Shareholders in WaMu Theater.

Coffee tastings are a key feature of Starbucks meetings. This year, shareholders smelled, slurped and tasted Starbucks Pike Place® Roast during annual meeting. Here's what it took to serve coffee to thousands:

  • 13 pouring stations
  • 104 pounds of Starbucks Pike Place® Roast coffee
  • 162 hawking trays
  • 265 volunteers
  • 2,608 short recyclable and compostable cups
Starbucks partners prepare to distribute thousands of cups of coffee.

“She is one of the best lyrical storytellers in music today, a woman who combines her art with her personal mission.”

-Kevin Johnson, introducing special musical guest Brandi Carlile

Surprise guest musician and Western Washington resident Brandi Carlile performs during the Starbucks Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
Starbucks partners take to the stage as the meeting wraps up at WaMu Theater.

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