Italians react to country's first Starbucks location Since its start in Seattle in the early 1970s, the Starbucks coffee chain has opened shops all over the country and the world, including European nations where coffee culture was already well established. One place they dared not tread was Italy, the coffee-centric land that helped founder Howard Schultz shape the chain's character in the first place. That changed this week. Seth Doane reports.