1987年，34岁的霍华德·舒尔茨召集了一批投资者，将他的老东家“星巴克咖啡公司”买下。这个小型的咖啡烘焙店起步于美国西雅图，名字来源于美国文坛杰出大师赫尔曼·麦尔维尔的经典著作《白鲸》中那个爱喝咖啡的主人公的名字。舒尔茨将公司重命名为“星巴克股份公司”。

　　Schultz's coffee bars were an instant success, fueling rapid growth and expansion, not only for Starbucks but also for the coffee industry as a whole. This new coffee culture supported a proliferation of stores and other sales avenues for Starbucks' beans. The company owns all of its stores, despite the constant stream of franchise inquiries, and has been steadily opening shops throughout the country. In 1992 Starbucks became the first specialty coffee company to go public, a testament to its size and prospects.

　　舒尔茨的咖啡吧的快速成功不仅使星巴克，同时也使整个赚主咖啡产业得以快速发展和扩张。这种新的咖啡文化也推动了大量衍生店铺及星巴克咖啡豆的其他销售渠道的建立。尽管要求特许加盟的呼声此起彼伏，但是公司依然手握所有店铺的控制权，并且继续在全国范围内稳步地开设多家店铺。1992年，星巴克作为第一家专业咖啡公司成功上市，再一次证明了其庞大的规模和美好的发展前景。

　　Starbucks' first major venture outside of the northwestern part of the nation was Chicago, where mail-order sales were strong. The company's specialty sales division developed new business through Nordstrom's department stores and established Starbucks coffee bars within Barnes and Noble bookstores. Starbucks also formed a partnership with Pepsico, Inc.to create and distribute a new ready-to-drink coffee-based beverage, Frappuccino, as well as entered into a licensing agreement with Kraft Foods. The company even developed a relationship with Capitol Records, releasing Blue Note Blend coffee and an accompanying jazz compilation on compact disc.

　　星巴克将其在美国西北部以外的地区所做的第一次冒险尝试，地点选在了芝加哥。那里的邮购咖啡销售很火暴。公司通过在诺德斯特龙百货商店开展新的咖啡业务和巴诺连锁书店内开设星巴克咖啡吧，拓展了新的专业销售渠道。同时，星巴克也与百事可乐公司建立了合作伙伴关系，共同研制和销售一款即饮的咖啡新饮品——法布奇诺（星冰乐）咖啡。此外，星巴克还与美国卡夫国际食品公司签署了专利使用权转让协定。公司甚至还同百代唱片公司开展合作关系，推出了一款蓝调音符混合咖啡，并附带有一张爵士乐专辑的光盘。