“Alshaya Group has been the licensed partner of Starbucks in the MENA region for more than 25 years, and we are extremely proud of the business we have built, with more than 1,300 cafes and 11,000 colleagues,” the company said, adding that affected employees would be provided for. With support.
The US coffee giant became embroiled in calls to boycott TikTok after it sued United Labor, a union for Starbucks employees, in October for trademark infringement over a since-deleted social media post from the union's account that retweeted a photo of a bulldozer storming The cafe. The barrier between Israel and Gaza. The post added the comment: “Solidarity with Palestine!”
The company said it condemned the violence in the region and described the post as “reckless and reprehensible.” The union objected.
Calls to boycott companies linked to or seen as helping Israeli policies, especially in the occupied West Bank, have found renewed support amid Israel's punitive war on Gaza, where local health officials say more than 30,000 people have been killed.
In a previous statement, Starbucks said that neither the company nor its former president or CEO provides financial support to the Israeli government or military, highlighting that it is working with partners in the region to provide thousands of jobs for local residents. “Starbucks is and will continue to be an apolitical organization,” she said.
But some customers, especially in Muslim-majority countries, have responded to these boycott calls.
A Starbucks franchise operator in Malaysia is also feeling the pressure.
I think all boycotters should know that Starbucks Malaysia is owned by BFood, a Malaysian company. We don't even have a single foreigner working in the head office or stores. “So, I think this boycott is not benefiting anyone,” Vincent Tan, founder of the group that owns Berjaya Food Berhad, said this week.
Local media reported a 38 percent drop in the company's revenue in 2023 compared to last year in the wake of Starbucks boycott sentiment.
