Which coffee chain was founded in 1971 in Seattle's Pike Place Market? Starbucks was founded there in 1971.
The company began on March 30, 1971, when Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker opened a store in Seattle. It initially sold whole coffee beans, tea, spices, and brewing equipment rather than the espresso drinks most customers associate with Starbucks today.
The original shop was first located at 2000 Western Avenue, near Pike Place Market. It moved to 1912 Pike Place in 1977, where the celebrated “Original Starbucks” location remains. That detail causes a common mix-up: the famous Pike Place address was not the company’s first physical address, though the business was founded in the market area.
Starbucks was inspired in part by Alfred Peet, whose Berkeley coffee business influenced the founders’ emphasis on high-quality beans. Howard Schultz later helped transform Starbucks into a coffeehouse chain serving espresso-based beverages, leading to its rapid expansion beyond Seattle.