SEATTLE, 2015-1-27 — /EPR Retail News/ — The 15 million women around the world who read Marie Claire magazine are looking for fashion and beauty trends, but they want more. They’re turning the pages or checking online to find inspiration and learn from female role models.
February’s edition features a “power profile” of Annie Young-Scrivner, president of Teavana and an executive vice president at Starbucks. In addition to highlighting Young-Scrivner’s leadership roles at Starbucks – including serving as president of Starbucks Canada, president of Tazo Tea, and Starbucks global chief marketing officer – the two-page article touches on some of the challenges she’s faced on her journey to becoming a top business executive.
Young-Scrivner, now 46, was born in Taiwan to Chinese parents and moved to Seattle when she was 7 years old.
“I remember second grade, coming to the U.S., learning my ABC’s,” she told the magazine. “My dad had worked for Kodak and could speak English fluently. When he moved here, he worked for a shipping company. My mom, who is an accountant, didn’t know any English. She had to go to community college just to learn enough so she could get back into the accounting world.”
As a teenager, Young-Scrivner began working in a department store for the health benefits and to help pay her way through college. That store is now owned by Macy’s, and Young-Scrivner serves as the youngest member of the Macy’s Board of Directors. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration-Marketing from the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Carlson School of Business at the University of Minnesota.
Her road to the top included driving a delivery truck. After graduating from college, she began a 20-year career at PepsiCo as a route sales representative. That involved loading an 18-foot truck with Frito-Lay products, then stocking grocery store shelves.
“My alarm went off at 2:30 a.m. every day, but I saw it as a huge opportunity to learn from the ground up,” she said.
In the Marie Claire article, Young-Scrivner reflects on her career path and success and shares this sentiment with readers:
“Dream big. That’s one thing my parents taught me,” she said. “I look at myself, a little Chinese girl who didn’t know a bit of English. I am here today because I was able to dream big.”
Additional advice she shares with readers, “Find something you are authentically passionate about. I was a huge fan of Starbucks way before I came to work for the company. I worked in 27 different countries and had 27 different Starbucks mugs. I was a fanatic.”
Now, as president of Teavana, she’s leading the charge to do for tea what Starbucks has done for coffee.
“We will continue to deliver an unparalleled super premium tea experience and transform our retail experience, leveraging our expertise in tea, tea blending and innovation,” said Young-Scrivner.
Teavana currently has 365 stores and 6 tea bars, with ambitions to re-imagine the tea experience for customers around the globe. Beginning in the U.S. and Canada, the Teavana team has their sights on expanding into new channels and across international markets, sharing their passion for super-premium tea, exclusive gifting and entertaining.
For more information on this news release, contact the Starbucks Newsroom.
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