Starbucks Heading to the 'Country of Coffee'

Howard Schultz first got the idea to open an American coffee shop after seeing coffee bars in Milan in the 1980s. Now his coffee chain is heading—in a way—home with what it says is "humility and respect." Starbucks will open its first Italian coffee shop in Milan in early 2017, reports the BBC. Other stores will likely follow, per the Guardian. "The dream of the company always has been to sometime complete the circle and open in Italy," Schultz says. "We are confident that Italian people are ready to live the Starbucks experience" in the "country of coffee," an Italian developer adds. Schultz says Starbucks—which boasts 22,000 outlets in 67 countries—will "honor the Italian people and their coffee culture." (More Starbucks stories.)