Starbucks opens first-of-a-kind store in Queens, New York

Starbucks on Monday opened a store in the Jamaica section of Queens, New York, which has a strong job training component.



The location is the first in a nationwide initiative Starbucks announced last summer to open stores in at least 15 diverse urban communities across the United States by 2018, with the aim to create new jobs, engage local women and minority-owned vendors and suppliers, and collaborate with local nonprofits to support training opportunities for youth in the individual communities.



Each of the stores will also have a dedicated in-store training space where young people can receive customer service and retail skills training, based on the same training Starbucks associates receive.



Starbucks will also leverage existing programs aimed at helping connect young people with internships, apprenticeships and jobs in the communities. The training component will also help Starbucks continue to make progress on its previously announced commitment to help 16-24 year olds who are not in school nor employed find education and meaningful jobs.



“By making a long-term investment in the form of new stores, we hope to play a meaningful role in supporting ongoing efforts to transform these vibrant communities – starting here in Jamaica – from one with a legacy of systemic barriers to opportunity, to one where young people see a pathway to lifelong success,” said Rodney Hines, director of community investments for Starbucks retail operations.



The Jamaica Starbucks will help guide the design and development of the other stores in the initiative. The next location to open will be in the West Florissant neighborhood of Ferguson, Missouri, where Starbucks broke ground in November 2015. The coffee giant is working with a local woman- and minority-owned bakery, Natalie’s Cakes and More, which was severely vandalized during the unrest in Ferguson in 2014. Starbucks is now carrying the bakery’s signature caramel cake at a dozen St. Louis-area locations. As a result, Natalie’s workforce has grown from three to 13.