Starbucks + Alibaba Group
Starbucks
Seattle, Washington · 2 relationships
Active relationship
Strategic Partnership · 2018–present
Alibaba Group
Hangzhou, Zhejiang · 1 relationship
Analysis
Starbucks and Alibaba announced a strategic partnership in August 2018 to connect Starbucks' China retail business with Alibaba's digital and on-demand commerce ecosystem. The original announcement named Ele.me, Hema, Tmall, Taobao and Alipay as participating platforms, with a delivery pilot planned for Beijing and Shanghai in September 2018 and expansion to 30 cities and more than 2,000 stores by the end of that year. [1]
The collaboration was structured around an omnichannel Starbucks experience rather than an equity transaction. Starbucks and Alibaba said they would integrate multiple platforms so customers could register, redeem benefits, order and access services through a virtual Starbucks store, while Hema locations could host dedicated Starbucks delivery kitchens for order fulfillment. Starbucks' China announcement described the related system as an integrated operating platform linking the Starbucks membership system with Alibaba applications. [1] [2]
Current Starbucks China disclosures show that the digital relationship has durable operational traces. Starbucks' delivery rules apply to orders placed through the Starbucks app or designated third-party partners, and its current privacy materials identify Tmall, Ele.me/Koubei and Starbucks' Alipay mini-program and Taobao-related channels among the third-party online services and partners used in China. [3] [4]
The partners contribute different capabilities: Starbucks supplies the coffeehouse brand, products, stores and customer-experience model, while Alibaba supplies consumer-facing platforms, delivery infrastructure and digital-commerce integration. The public record does not disclose a separate ownership stake, partnership valuation or fixed end date, so the active classification reflects continuing platform and delivery integration documented by Starbucks rather than a published long-term financial contract. [1] [3]
Participants
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Seattle, Washington · 2 records in this database
Starbucks opened its first store in Seattle's Pike Place Market in April 1971. [1] Founders Gerald Baldwin, Gordon Bowker and Zev Siegl invested in a retail concept centered on fresh-roasted whole-bean coffee, tea and spices, and the company chose the name Starbucks partly for its association with the seafaring world of Herman Melville's Moby-Dick. [1] [2]
The company's coffeehouse model developed during the 1980s. [3] Howard Schultz joined Starbucks in 1982, encountered Milan's espresso-bar culture on a 1983 trip to Italy, and helped test an espresso-bar concept in Seattle in 1984; he founded Il Giornale in 1985. [3] In 1987, Il Giornale acquired Starbucks' assets with local-investor backing, changed its name to Starbucks Corporation, and continued the business as a coffeehouse company. [3]
In fiscal 2025, Starbucks described itself in its Form 10-K as a roaster, marketer and retailer of specialty coffee operating in 89 markets. [4] The company purchases and roasts coffee, sells handcrafted coffee and tea beverages and food through company-operated stores, and reaches customers through licensed stores and grocery and foodservice channels, including its Global Coffee Alliance with Nestle. [4]
The same filing identifies Starbucks Coffee, Teavana, Ethos and Starbucks Reserve as brands and reported 21,514 company-operated stores as of September 28, 2025. [4] A 2026 proxy statement describes the broader network as more than 40,000 company-operated and licensed coffeehouses, while the 2025 filing lists the corporate principal office at 2401 Utah Avenue South in Seattle. [5] [4]
Hangzhou, Zhejiang · 1 record in this database
Alibaba Group was established in 1999 by 18 people led by Jack Ma, a former English teacher from Hangzhou. Alibaba says it began as an online wholesale marketplace helping small Chinese exporters and entrepreneurs reach global buyers, and that its current identity is a global technology company focused on AI, cloud computing and commerce. [1]
In its fiscal-2025 Form 20-F, Alibaba identified Taobao and Tmall Group, Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group, Cloud Intelligence Group, Cainiao Smart Logistics Network, Local Services Group, Hujing Digital Media and Entertainment Group, and All others as its business groups. Taobao and Tmall cover China retail and wholesale commerce, while international commerce includes platforms such as AliExpress, Trendyol, Lazada, Daraz and Alibaba.com. [2]
The group combines transaction platforms with infrastructure and services around them. Its Cloud Intelligence Group offers infrastructure-as-a-service, platform-as-a-service and model-as-a-service cloud services to customers worldwide. Cainiao operates an end-to-end logistics network, controls key nodes to support service quality and efficiency, and serves both Alibaba's e-commerce businesses and third parties. [2]
Alibaba's fiscal-2025 shareholder letter describes a “user first, AI-driven” strategy centered on two core businesses: e-commerce and “AI + Cloud.” The company says its Qwen family of large language and multimodal models powers services across enterprise solutions and consumer platforms, while its commerce business provides merchants, brands, retailers and small businesses with technology and marketing reach. Alibaba separately announced that it would scale investment in AI and cloud infrastructure, foundation models and AI-native applications, and the use of AI in existing businesses. [2] [3] [1]