Space, place and the colonies: re‐reading the Starbucks' story

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to re‐examine a celebrity CEO account using a variety of literary forms to uncover discourses of colonisation. Focuses on the probanza de mérito and the wonder tale or traveller's tale. Ideas of Non‐Place (Augé) and spatial practices (Lefebvre) conclude the analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

A close reading of the account of the building of the Starbucks retail empire, given in the CEO account: Pour Your Heart into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time against the text, gives insights into the strategy and internal logic of the company founder which might otherwise be missed.

Findings

The account reveals the nature of the published account of the growth of the company as analogous to many of the accounts of the colonisation of the new world. The analysis of spatial practices at the company is used to explain some of the most successful resistance to its expansion.

Originality/value

Uses a wide range of theory to unpack celebrity success narrative and reveal counter‐narrative of practice.

Citation

Rippin, A. (2007), "Space, place and the colonies: re‐reading the Starbucks' story", Critical Perspectives on International Business, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 136-149. https://doi.org/10.1108/17422040710744944