Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced Friday that he will not run for president after exploring a run earlier this year.

"My belief in the need to reform our two-party system has not wavered, but I have concluded that an independent campaign for the White House is not how I can best serve our country at this time," he said in a letter on Friday morning.

"I will spend this election cycle and the years ahead supporting bold and creative initiatives to transform our broken system and address the disparity of opportunity that plagues our nation," he added.

Earlier this year, he said in an interview that aired on CBS' "60 Minutes," that he was "seriously thinking" of running for president "as a centrist independent, outside of the two-party system," prompting worries among Democrats that he could split the vote and help President Donald Trump win a second term. He assembled an elite public relations and communications team, including former John McCain campaign boss Steve Schmidt.

After launching a media blitz to build buzz for a potential run, Schultz shook up his political team in June and took the summer off from political activities to recover from back surgeries. At the time he said he would be "back in touch after Labor Day."