Founded in Seattle in 1971, Starbucks is a well recognized brand in the world. Best known for the distinguished taste and quality of its coffee and its customer experience, the Company is now worth more than $ 113 billion. Let’s take a look at some unknown facts about this popular coffee retailer.
Unknown facts about Starbucks
1) Although Howard Schultz is synonymous with Starbucks, the multinational coffee chain was first started by two teachers and a writer, Zev Siegl, Jerry Baldwin and Gordon Bowker respectively. The three owners sold the Company to Schultz in 1987.
2) Starbucks was almost named Pequod, which was the name of the whaling ship in Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick. The Company changed Pequod to Starbucks, which was another character in Melville’s novel.
3) The Company has incredible business ethics and takes good care of its employees. Starbucks spends more money on its employees’ health insurance than on coffee beans.
4) Starbucks is very strict about anything interrupting the aroma of its freshly ground coffee as the aroma is a crucial part of the Starbucks experience. Starbucks banned smoking cigarettes inside its stores and does not allow its employees to wear any kind of perfume or cologne.
5) Starbucks established many secret stores around Seattle. These Starbucks stores are disguised as normal indie coffee shops. Among these secretive stores, Roy Street Coffee and Tea is the place where the Company tests its new recipes and products.
6) There is a Starbucks store inside the Langley, Virginia Complex of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA,) which is called “Stealthy Starbucks” or “Store No. 1.” The baristas in this store undergo critical examinations before getting hired.
7) The Company, following its eco friendly policy, has opened several stores inside retired shipping containers since 2011. These stores are generally used as drive throughs only.
8) A Starbucks grande coffee contains 320 milligrams of caffeine, which is four times the amount of caffeine you would find in a can of Red Bull.
With an annual revenue of $ 24.71 billion in 2018 and nearly 30,000 stores worldwide, Starbucks has established itself as the world’s best coffee retailer.
Which of these facts about Starbucks did you find interesting? Comment below and let us know.
Info Edge (India) Ltd shareholders have overwhelmingly approved an investment of up to ₹1,000 crore in the company’s third venture capital fund, Info Edge Ventures Fund III. The proposal received near-unanimous backing, with 99.9995% of valid votes in favor out of 1,274 participants.
Smartweb Internet Services Ltd, a wholly owned Info Edge subsidiary, will act as sponsor and investment manager for the new fund. This move strengthens Info Edge’s commitment to backing early-stage startups and expanding its footprint in India’s venture capital landscape.
Info Edge has a strong track record as an early investor in leading Indian startups like Zomato and PB Fintech, with combined holdings in these firms valued at ₹31,500 crore ($3.7 billion) as of March 31, 2025.
MeitY Startup Hub (MSH), under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, has partnered with fintech leader Razorpay to support the growth of deeptech and emerging tech startups across India, with a special focus on those in Tier II and III cities. Through this collaboration, early-stage startups will gain access to Razorpay’s fintech infrastructure, mentorship, and resources via the Razorpay Rize program.
Startups in areas like AI, blockchain, robotics, and IoT will benefit from streamlined company incorporation support, expert mentorship, product credits, and guidance for applying to global accelerators such as Y Combinator. Selected founders will also join the exclusive Rize Community, connecting with peer networks and attending masterclasses.
MSH CEO Panneerselvam Madanagopal emphasized that this partnership will help founders scale faster by providing vital support in mentorship, capital access, and digital infrastructure. As India’s startup ecosystem surpasses 159,000 DPIIT-recognised startups, this initiative aims to give deeptech entrepreneurs the tools and networks needed to innovate for India and expand globally.
Info Edge, the parent of Naukri.com, has achieved a 36% gross internal rate of return (IRR) on its startup investments since 2007, turning a total investment of INR 3,959 crore across 111 startups into a portfolio now valued at INR 36,855 crore-a nearly 9X gain. Early bets on Zomato and Policybazaar have been especially lucrative, with holdings in these two companies alone worth INR 31,500 crore as of March 2025.
The company’s investment strategy spans multiple vehicles, including the SEBI-registered Info Edge Venture Fund (IEVF), Info Edge Capital, and Capital 2B, with a combined fund corpus of INR 3,423 crore and Info Edge committing INR 1,614 crore. Early-stage investments now contribute 30-40% of the company’s overall value.
Info Edge’s Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) investments have yielded an IRR of 18.7%. Many portfolio companies, such as TrueMeds, Geniemode, Attentive.ai, and InPrime, have attracted follow-on funding from major investors like Accel, Peak XV Partners, and Tiger Global. Notably, BlueStone, the largest investment of Info Edge Capital, has filed for an IPO after securing investments from Prosus, Peak XV, and Steadview Capital. Founder Sanjeev Bikhchandani emphasized the company’s focus on strong governance and financial controls, with a preference for value realization through public listings or strategic exits.