Finally, after months of speculation regarding the much-anticipated partnership between Uber’s delivery division Uber eats, and one of the largest coffee giants in America, Starbucks, it looks like the partnership might be shifting to reality.
Indeed, Uber has pushed on the partnership primarily because of the company’s shift in culture which was ushered in by current CEO of Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi.
In an interview with Mad Money on Monday, CEO Khosrowshahi, together with Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson, informed the media that when it comes to improving a company’s culture, the work is never really done.
Indeed, Khosrowshahi believes that Uber is in a much better position than it was the previous year.
In fact, last year wasn’t the dandiest for the ride app giant, which saw its founder and former CEO Travis Kalanic resign as a result of massive revelations regarding the company’s unethical behavior with a number of its upper ranks.
Uber Eats looking to strike a partnership with Starbucks
Improving the Company’s Reputation
When Khosrowshahi assumed the mantle of CEO, he vowed to return the company’s moral compass in the right direction.
Indeed, Khosrowshahi informed Cramer that despite the bad reputation the company had before, some of the company’s initial culture was great and that was one of the reasons why the company had grown so first during its first years of service.
Nevertheless, he admits that when a company is growing as rapidly as Uber was, success sometimes imprints much more rapidly than failure. So when this happens, it can be much easier to forego focusing on other frameworks of the company that needs attention.
That being said, he now admits that the company is in a much better place and point in time. Which is beneficial now that the company is gearing up to align itself with corporations such as Starbucks and deem them partners.
Of late, company cultures have been the subject of focus for quite a number of investors and consumers around the globe.
Indeed, for a company like Uber to be able to partner up with a global corporation like Starbucks, which is widely hailed for its moral standards, it will be a major win for the ride-hailing service, and perhaps the most ideal time for the company to table an initial public offering next year.
Uber has had to work extensively on its reputation this past one year
A Decent Reputation for Starbucks
As a matter of fact, it is the commitment to social responsibility that has enabled Starbucks to gain plenty of success in the Chinese Market despite the ongoing trade dispute between the United States and the People’s Republic of China.
Additionally, CEO Kevin Johnson has stated that as a company, Starbucks has invested heavily on its partners and ensuring that all their needs are met. This is also in reference to the company’s 250,000 plus employees located in different coffee shops around the world.
Indeed Johnson reveals that during a discussion with one of the company’s partners in China, one of the major things that the partner said was important to them was that the care of the aging population in the country was extremely important.
In response, Starbucks went as far as creating a new kind of insurance in the region. One known as parental health insurance, which covers any catastrophic illness that might affect parents.
Which in turn, is further fostering a solidified family-oriented culture in China.
Surprisingly, despite the ongoing trade war between the US and China, Starbucks is running a successful venture in the Chinese region
A Drop in Share Value
Nevertheless, things were not so rosy for Starbucks shares last week, with the company experiencing an unprecedented 2.5 percent dip in share value to settle at $65.34 a share.
Moreover, an investors meeting held on Thursday last week predicted a lowering in the long-term earnings forecast for the company.
However, the meeting also highlighted some important and promising strategies of growth that the company would be focusing on pretty soon.
One of them would be the highly anticipated partnership with Alibaba based in China, and Uber Eats in the United States.
Conclusively, the company is looking to expand its consumer base in a bid to boost its profits and reputability. Which will work favorably for Uber which over the recent years, has suffered tremendously in terms of reputation thanks to a myriad of scandals being thrown its way.
Nevertheless, both companies are set to benefit from the new partnership, and only time will tell how the public will respond to the merger of the two.
