OKINAWA: Malaysians should stop the boycott of Starbucks Malaysia because it is only hurting the people, said founder and advisor for Berjaya Corporation Bhd Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun.
“I think all those who are boycotting Starbucks Malaysia should know that it is a Malaysia-owned company. We don’t even have one foreigner working in the head office. In the stores, 80% to 85% of employees are Muslims. This boycott doesn’t benefit anyone.
“Yes, it has some impact on us but now at least it is improving and like I said it’s all Malaysian owned, it’s run by Malaysian. It’s just a franchise, it’s not owned by an American,” he said during a media meet here on Sunday.
Nevertheless, Tan noted a shift in momentum and expects the third quarter of the financial year 2024 to show improvement.
“The tide seems to have turned as we are seeing some improvement in sales,” he said.
For the second quarter of FY24, Berjaya Food Bhd reported a 35% quarter-on-quarter drop in revenue to RM183 million and a loss after tax and minority interest of about RM42 million.
Tan’s Berjaya Food Bhd (BFood) faced significant challenges due to the boycott of Starbucks in Malaysiam which was made worse by the weakening of the ringgit against the dollar.
This resulted in a substantial decline in revenue and a record net loss for the second quarter of the fiscal year 2024.
The boycott, said to have to have sparked by the Israel-Palestine conflict, heavily impacted BFood as Starbucks Malaysia contributes 90% of the group’s revenue.
