A number of years ago I (Joe) gave a boardroom talk in Milan, Italy, to a number of executives from different companies. One was the vice president of a global coffee manufacturer, who said something that amazed me: “There’s been no innovation in the coffee industry in fifteen years.” I responded: “Have you never heard of Starbucks?” This gentleman could only conceive of innovation in physical goods, not in experiences— a particularly ironic stance given we were in one of the foremost coffee meccas of the world, the very city that inspired Howard Schultz to create the Starbucks coffee-drinking experience.

几年前，我（乔）在意大利米兰给一些来自不同公司的高管做了一次董事会演讲。一位是一家全球咖啡制造商的副总裁，他说了一句令我吃惊的话：“咖啡行业15年来没有创新。”我回答说：“你从来没有听说过星巴克吗？“这位先生只能设想在实物上的创新，而不是在体验上的创新——这是一个特别讽刺的立场，因为我们身处世界上最重要的咖啡圣地之一，正是这个城市激发了霍华德·舒尔茨（Howard Schultz）创造星巴克咖啡饮用体验的灵感。