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Founded in 1971 in Seattle by three partners initially selling whole-bean coffee rather than drinks. Howard Schultz joined in 1982 and, inspired by Italian espresso-bar culture on a trip to Milan, later returned to buy the company in 1987 and reshaped it around the sit-down café format that made it a global phenomenon — widely credited with popularising espresso-based drinks and "third place" café culture in markets that previously had little of either.
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