Starbucks is speeding up innovation at its Seattle research hub

Inside a 20,000-square-foot facility at its headquarters in Seattle, global coffee giant Starbucks is trying something different. In a way the 48-year-old company’s new innovation hub, named the Tryer Center, feels like it could be home to a startup in Silicon Valley.

The vision for Tryer and the next wave of innovation at the brand is CEO Kevin Johnson’s. He has been at the helm for some two years since succeeding Howard Schultz, and is focusing hard on three strategic priorities in the U.S.: the creation of a better in-store experience, innovating its beverage platform and creating stronger digital relationships. The plan has seen success as company just reported its third-straight quarter of 4 percent same store sales growth in the U.S.

“We now have 30,000 stores around the world serving 100 million customers a week, and with scale and complexity, it can become the enemy of speed. This is all about how we transform the way we work at Starbucks, so that we can accelerate the velocity of innovation,” Johnson said.

At Tryer, employees are testing out new combinations for cold beverages, using rapid prototyping via 3D printer and even trying out delivery mechanisms for the company’s new partnership with UberEats for delivery. They’re surrounded by walls filled with sticky notes, and functional mock stores built on wheels, so they can be deconstructed and remodeled quickly. The facility is where new projects, generated by employees — known as “partners” at Starbucks — across the company’s headquarters, are being put to the test, going from idea to action in 100 days.

Since launching some six months ago, 133 unique projects have been tested, and more than 1,500 partners have come through to see what is being worked on or participate themselves. Johnson said roughly 40 projects are currently in stores in some form.

Using Springboard, an online crowdsourcing platform, Starbucks partners at headquarters from every level can submit ideas, collaborate and innovate. The model will eventually be expanded to partners in the field across the country, suppliers and potentially even customers.

“We have so many partners who have deep knowledge of different parts of the business, so our job is to enable them to test them out and build them as quickly as possible,” Janice Waszak, Tryer Center director, said.

Starbucks has not disclosed how much it’s invested in the center or its projects. Right now 10 employees support the innovation center full-time, with engineers and baristas working in the center part-time.

Stephanie Lim is a senior concept engineer at Starbucks who created a single-cup brewing prototype made on the lab’s 3D printer. It’s a simple system that brews for two minutes, and automatically drains, making it easier for baristas to brew consistently.