Some facts:
- this year, 2006, Starbucks is projected to generate revenue of $7.8 billion.
- Next year, Starbucks is projected by Value Line to generate $9.6 billion of sales.
- Worldwide approximately 500 million people will get malaria.
- Worldwide approximately 1-3 million people between 70 and 90% of them children will get malaria.
- Malaria can be prevented by using a five dollar bednet.
- More children will die this month from malaria than starbucks has employees.
- More children will die from malaria over the next 48 hours than starbucks has stores.
Now for the story. Last week I sent out an email to some of my friends and associates telling them that I was honored to be invited to the White House Summit on Malaria. In that email I asked this question and it was repeated on the economist website: http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/businessview/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8405052
“If Starbucks can figure out how to sell $7.5 billion of coffee each year, we, all the citizens of the world working together, should be able to figure out how to raise $5 billion every three years to buy a bed net”
what I didn't include in my stream of thought email was that we need
one billion bednets for the one billion people most at risk for malaria and the bednets last for three to five years.
I ask you, fellow Starbucks fans, lovers etc.and those of you who drink other brands of coffee to join us and buy a bednet or two or three for the poorest people on earth, many of whom may die from malaria if they are not provided with a bednet.
If you are interested in joining this team please email me at vs.malaria@gmail.com
OK it gets better -
today SBUX has 12,000 locations - if each location raised $228 per day then SBUX would generate $1 billion/year for bednets (12,000*228*365) that is exactly how many bednets the world would need to almost fully provide all teh people in the world with a bednet!
It is important to note that SBUX recently set a goal of 40,000 stores. If SBUX hit that level of store openings it would only need to collect $68.46 per store to provide a bednet to everyone in the world who needs it.
Participants: lance laifer and I hope to add Howard Schultz, Jim Donald and the 115,000 employees of starbucks and the billion or so customers of starbucks