Howard Schultz, the former chief executive of Starbucks who has been pondering an independent run for the White House, plans to make stops in Colorado this week, including a Denver appearance Thursday.

His website says he is scheduled to appear at noon Thursday at a “town hall on governing from the center” hosted by the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce. The event is to be held at Mile High Station, 2027 W. Colfax Ave. in Denver, according to details posted at Eventbrite.

He also plans to visit the startup incubator Techstars in Boulder at 3 p.m. Thursday, a spokesperson said. And on Friday, he is scheduled to tour the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and meet with athletes.

Schultz — who led Starbucks, the giant Seattle-based coffee chain, until last June — has formed an exploratory bid for a potential presidential run as an independent candidate.

Schultz causes a stir recently when he remarked on a radio program March 14 that he had likely spent more time with the military than the other candidates for president.

He later apologized for the comment. Two Democratic candidates are veterans: Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Gabbard served in Iraq with the Hawaii Army National Guard, and Buttigieg is a veteran of the Afghanistan war, having served a tour with the Navy Reserve. After Schultz made his remark on the Hugh Hewitt show, Buttigieg tweeted that he didn’t “recall seeing any Starbucks over there.”

Schultz later tweeted that leaders must accept responsibility for mistakes and his comment “was wrong.”

During Schultz’s time at Starbucks, the company pledged to hire more veterans and last year said it had hired 21,000 vets over five years.