WASHINGTON: Anti-war and pro-Palestinian groups are calling for a boycott of global giant Star Bucks, citing the company's support for Israeli atrocities in Gaza. Starbucks is cutting jobs at its Middle East franchises as business plummets, Reuters news agency reported.
The company's business partner in the Middle East is Gulf retail giant Alshaya Group. Reuters news agency reports that they are planning to lay off more than 2,000 employees. The process started from Sunday. There are a total of 50,000 employees. About four percent of them are expelled. The Alshaya Group operates Starbucks franchises in the Middle East and North Africa.
McDonald's and Starbucks had earlier announced that they were facing a setback in sales due to the strong boycott calls due to their pro-Israel position. Both the companies stated that the boycott has adversely affected the trade. This is the first time in four years that the company has not been able to make the expected gains in sales. The Middle East, China and India markets have all seen major declines in sales for these companies.
The company's share price also fell after the expected profit in sales was not achieved. CEO Chris Kempczynski has also acknowledged that boycott campaigns have hurt McDonald's sales. He also said that there was a setback in markets like Indonesia and Malaysia. The CEO also assessed that there is little chance of a rise in sales in the affected markets if the war continues.
The call for a boycott intensified after McDonald's statement came out that it provided free food packages to Israeli soldiers. Apart from McDonald's and Starbucks, boycott calls were also raised against American and Israeli companies including Coca-Cola and Pepsi.