Coffee time: Patrick Kwok

Starbucks baristas have been providing Singaporean customers with their daily coffee fix since 1996 when, shortly before Christmas of that year, its first cafe opened at Liat Towers, along the bustling Orchard Road.

Which makes you wonder whether Starbucks Singapore General Manager Patrick Kwok has his math wrong.

"We’ll turn 16 this year," he proudly declares.

Before there is a chance to question the timeline, Kwok adds: "And next year we’ll celebrate our 29th year and still be 16."

"We need to ensure that our partners are well equipped with the relevant skills to represent and provide the best Starbucks experience."

Puzzlement promptly turns to an understanding of his meaning as Kwok explains his numerical riddle to The CEO Magazine.

Starbucks, he says, can ill afford to age. In the dynamic and competitive sector in which it operates, the company must constantly remain, what he calls, ‘future-ready’. And that means staying young and relevant.

"We need to be forever 16," he says.

"This is something we keep talking about in the business. Starbucks in Singapore will be 29 years old next year, but we remain 16. If we don’t retain that young and vibrant outlook, the business will start to mature and decline.

"It’s very hard to survive in the food and beverage sector in Singapore. If that’s all you are, food and beverage, you won’t keep your customers and employees happy. That’s why we position ourselves as a fast-moving coffee and lifestyle brand, with people and the planet in mind, and powered by technology."

Digitally savvy approach

Within that assessment lies Starbucks Singapore’s three core pillars, which have been the bedrock of the business for many years now: its staff – or partners as they are called by Starbucks – innovation and sustainability.

Even during the difficult days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Starbucks remained true to its philosophies. It continued to invest and innovate, ensuring it was in robust health when the dark clouds of the pandemic lifted.

"There was no retrenchment and no salary cut. We left no-one behind," Kwok recalls. "And we also developed the digital and business analytics during the pandemic. We have record digital sales in Asia–Pacific, including delivery, mobile order and pay, ecommerce and data analytics. That’s why in 2022 our profits were already back to 2019 levels."

Over the years, Starbucks has been constantly improving digital services through its app, online platforms and ecosystems to upgrade the customer experience.

And these improvements have clearly had the desired effect, with Starbucks capturing the 2023 Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Award for the streamlined experiences it offers rewards club members who order and pay through the mobile app.

"To keep up to speed with our digitally savvy customers who demand more seamless retail experiences and greater convenience, we need to ensure that our partners are well equipped with the relevant skills to represent and provide the best Starbucks experience," Kwok says.

Cups of innovation

But innovation doesn’t start and finish with technology. Starbucks Singapore has developed a reputation for imaginative designs and concepts, perhaps most notably at its flagship store at Jewel Changi Airport, which marries iconic elements of Singapore and Jewel Changi Airport while celebrating the Starbucks coffee journey.

On the sustainability front, Starbucks Singapore has developed a ‘Greener Stores’ framework in collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund. The project is designed to create lower-impact stores, which help the planet through the reduction of carbon emission, water use and landfill waste.

Once again, its efforts were recognized, with the company picking up the ESG Digitalization Initiative of the Year – Singapore award at the FMCG Asia Awards.

"We believe that if we take care of our partners, they will take care of our business."

But it’s the people, or the partners, Kwok returns to. Starbucks Singapore is, he enthuses, focused on a building a ‘joyful workforce’. If that is accomplished – and there is ample evidence to suggest it has been – that will flow through to the customer experience.

This has contributed to a variety of accolades including ranking first in the Straits Times list of Singapore's Best Employers 2024 in the restaurants and food services category, and seventh best employer overall.

As an example of its retention strategy, and to show loyalty to staff, jobs are kept open for Singaporean men who must do national service, and their two-year absence counts toward long-service leave and any other employment benefits. Thanks to this initiative, Starbucks Singapore was recognized by the Ministry of Defence, receiving the NS Mark (Gold) accreditation and Total Defence Awards.

"Our partners are at the heart of the Starbucks experience," Kwok says. "We believe that if we take care of our partners, they will take care of our business."