Original Starbucks - Seattle, Washington - The Birthplace of the Original Starbucks Coffee Shop

The original Starbucks was opened inPike Place Marketin Seattle, Washington, in 1971 by three partners: English teacher Jerry Baldwin , historyteacher Zev Siegel, and writer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_BowkerAlfred Peet (whom they knewpersonally) to sell high-quality coffee beans and equipment. From1971-1976, that first Starbucks was at 2000 Western Avenue; it then wasrelocated to 1912 Pike Place, where it remains to this day. During theirfirst year of operation, they purchased green coffee beans from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peet's_Coffee_%26_Tea

Entrepreneur Howard Schultz joined the company in 1982 as Director of Marketing, andafter a trip to Milan, Italy advised thatthe company should sell coffee and espresso drinks as well asbeans. The owners rejected this idea, believing that getting into thebeverage business would distract the company from its primary focus. Tothem, coffee wassomething to be prepared in the home. Certain that there was money to bemade selling pre-made drinks; Schultz started theIl Giornalecoffee barchain in 1985.

In 1984, the original owners of Starbucks, led by Baldwin, took the opportunity to purchase Peet's (Baldwin still works there).

The location was at the corner of Virginia and Pike Place, where this first-ever Starbucks was in business until January of 1977, when it moved to its current "original" store one block south. The current store in the Market is actually the sixth one, since there were stores in University Village, Capitol Hill, Edmonds, and Bellevue, along with the original-original, before the present Market Starbucks opened. And the stores in those days were quite different than now. They sold only coffee beans (roasted at first at Peet's in Berkeley) and coffee makers, not cups of coffee (and certainly not lattes), though they would pour you a free cup in the first year.

The interior of the first Starbucks offers a long and white high-ceilinged room with glass cabinets along one side. The area is open to visitors who enjoy sipping some Sumatra or are just catching a glimpse of history. The fazade of the store retains its crude lettering and appearance per the historic codes of the neighborhood. The actual coffeehouse is along a strip of retail shops across the many food stalls, produce sellers, fish markets, restaurants, and the shops inside Pike Place Market.

If you are a Starbucks connoisseur, you will want to stop by the birthplace of an icon. Seattle offers an array of cultural and historical venues, but the original Starbucks coffee destination is worth a visit. The appearance is not much different than some of the older Starbucks cafes but does offer an interesting taste in history and a piece of Seattle you will never forget.