Starbucks customers have taken to Payola to raise $50,000 as a way to convince the coffee giant to close its Trump Tower location. The initiative was reportedly stated by Ivan Pardo, the CEO of Buycott.
The campaign’s description reads:
“Many loyal Starbucks customers will be disappointed to learn that Starbucks maintains a store inside Trump Towers in New York City. The money Starbucks gives Trump every month is used to fund the bigotry and racism that he broadcasts across the country. Macy’s, NBC-Universal, ESPN, Apple, and NASCAR have all cut ties with Trump, but Starbucks continues to hold out, forcing us to unwillingly fund Donald Trump’s hate with every latte bought.”
It was also noted:
“Just signing petitions hasn’t been enough to persuade Starbucks, so we’ve developed a new tactic to get their attention.”
The funds from the campaign will be used to purchase Starbucks gift cards IF the company terminates its Trump Tower lease. Pardo shared with Buzzfeed:
“Part of what we’re trying to do with Buycott is go behind these tactics with no teeth, like petitions, where you don’t really have skin in the game. I wanted to see if we could leverage people who were already passionate about this in a more concentrated manner.”
Obviously there are other items that Starbucks must consider before making the decision (i.e. employees, the location’s revenue, etc.), but for now, having over 1200 customers pledge $41,000 seems to have attracted some attention.
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