A global jaunt for Starbucks joe

BY LIZ ATWOOD
THE BALTIMORE SUN

May 8, 2005

John Winter Smith is nothing if not an optimist. For eight years, he has chased a goal that he admits he may never achieve: to visit every Starbucks Coffee Co. store in the world.

The Silver Spring, Md., resident has bought coffee at more than 4,500 of the chain's outlets in North America and 213 overseas. He still has a long way to go internationally.

"I think I'm slipping a little," says Smith, 33, a computer programmer.

The Seattle-based coffee chain owns 4,525 stores in North America and 1,018 abroad, according to a company spokeswoman. In the coming year, Starbucks expects to open 1,500 stores worldwide - an average of four stores a day.

Smith, a native of Houston, says his quest began as a lark, spurred by a conversation with a friend in a Starbucks in his hometown in 1997. "The idea randomly popped into my head," he says.

More...