Starbucks Lands Macca

Starbucks announced that it has landed a really big fish for its new Hear Music record label – Paul McCartney.

The company signed an exclusive agreement with McCartney and has plans to release a new album by the former Beatle this summer. The publicly traded company definitely needed a boost in investor confidence when it came to the fledgling record label, and Macca might just to do the trick.

Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz told investors the company plans to open 10,000 more locations to the 13,000 already existing locations in the next four years, and set a target to double the company’s sales and profit over the next four to five years, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The company will continue to expand beyond coffee, Schultz added, while continuing to keep a close watch on its core business. Starbucks wants customers to see it as a haven of culture and has written internal memos over the last 15 years to persuade managers to have an entrepreneurial spirit, the WSJ said.

The company is in talks to sign other artists for its label, both established and emerging.

Although McCartney’s agreement with Starbucks is exclusive, he will remain affiliated with EMI for any classical releases like last year’s Ecce Cor Meum.