From the Ground Up

A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America

By: Howard Schultz

Narrated by: Howard Schultz

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the longtime CEO and chairman of Starbucks, a bold, dramatic work about the new responsibilities that leaders, businesses, and citizens share in American society today—as viewed through the intimate lens of one man’s life and work.

What do we owe one another? How do we channel our drive, ingenuity, even our pain, into something more meaningful than individual success? And what is our duty in the places where we live, work, and play?

These questions are at the heart of the American journey. They are also ones that Howard Schultz has grappled with personally since growing up in the Brooklyn housing projects and while building Starbucks from eleven stores into one of the world’s most iconic brands.

In From the Ground Up, Schultz looks for answers in two interwoven narratives. One story shows how his conflicted boyhood—including experiences he has never before revealed—motivated Schultz to become the first in his family to graduate from college, then to build the kind of company his father, a working-class laborer, never had a chance to work for: a business that tries to balance profit and human dignity.

A parallel story offers a behind-the-scenes look at Schultz’s unconventional efforts to challenge old notions about the role of business in society. From health insurance and free college tuition for part-time baristas to controversial initiatives about race and refugees, Schultz and his team tackled societal issues with the same creativity and rigor they applied to changing how the world consumes coffee.

Throughout the book, Schultz introduces a cross-section of Americans transforming common struggles into shared successes. In these pages, lost youth find first jobs, aspiring college students overcome the yoke of debt, post-9/11 warriors replace lost limbs with indomitable spirit, former coal miners and opioid addicts pave fresh paths, entrepreneurs jump-start dreams, and better angels emerge from all corners of the country.

From the Ground Up is part candid memoir, part uplifting blueprint of mutual responsibility, and part proof that ordinary people can do extraordinary things. At its heart, it’s an optimistic, inspiring account of what happens when we stand up, speak out, and come together for purposes bigger than ourselves. Here is a new vision of what can be when we try our best to lead lives through the lens of humanity.

Critic reviews

“From the Ground Up will resonate with anyone who knows what it’s like to overcome adversity. Howard Schultz’s dream to make the world more fair and welcoming for everyone is truly a breath of fresh air.”—Serena Williams

“Howard Schultz has written a compelling and moving story about how his childhood hardships influenced his creation of Starbucks and inspired him to create a company with a social conscience. Schultz offers powerful lessons about how companies can help address social problems and how we as a society can come together to ensure that every American has the opportunities open to a poor boy from Canarsie—to see the world ‘not as it was, but as it could be.’”—Secretary Robert Gates

“It’s rare for powerful Fortune 500 CEOs and entrepreneurs to open up and share their vulnerabilities and personal challenges. In From the Ground Up, Howard Schultz does just that. More important, he documents how these have motivated him to take on monumental challenges that set the example that capitalism can be a platform for not just accomplishment but also compassion. From the Ground Up is a great read that will inspire all of us to try harder to help those who need it.”—Mark Cuban

“In From the Ground Up, Howard Schultz shares a uniquely American journey that begins in the public housing projects of Brooklyn and leads to the boardroom of one of the world’s most admired companies. More than a memoir or compilation of business lessons, it’s a compelling story about how character and values can spur positive change in people’s lives.”—Admiral William H. McRaven

Howard Spills the Beans

The life and times of Howard Schultz and Starbucks has given me a new perspective on both. Thank you for the creation of the third place I value deeply.

Inspiring

Lessons about life, people, values, companies, QSR.
It is a must for any person who wants to lead people.

Please Run

Howard Schultz is the textbook American success story of how a poor boy from a dysfunctional home in Brooklyn can rise above the odds and create a business that values kindness and sustainability. Starbucks has been at the forefront of compassionate capitalism. I desperately long for a moderate liberal candidate with the ideals of Mr. Schultz, and I pray that he runs and that he wins the presidency. He is a good man.

Generational Read

Everyone whose living in this generation will get a valuable lesson reading this book. Recommend!

A learning opportunity

A behind the scenes account of how Starbucks became the juggernaut they are today.