In a note written to employees on Sunday, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said that the company was developing plans to hire 10,000 refugees over five years in 75 countries. It was a clear and obvious rebuke of President Donald Trump's executive order temporarily banning travelers from Syria and six other Muslim-majority countries.
As a result, some consumers are tweeting #BoycottStarbucks.
Shultz has political ambitions
Schultz endorsed Hillary Clinton during her presidential run. He was also vetted for Hillary Clinton's pick to head the Department of Labor and, according to hacked emails released by WikiLeaks. He was even considered for the Vice Presidency.
"Given the impact that the Presidential election has had on the stock market, it was only fitting that we found a way to gauge consumer sentiment, as it relates to the recent election and the restaurants space," writes Hedgeye Restaurants analyst Howard Penney.
In a survey conducted on January 30th by consumer research company CivicScience, consumers were asked the following questions: “How much do you drink Starbucks coffee?" and "If the Presidential election were held today, whom would you vote for?” The answers provide some interesting insight into why Schultz has weighed in on these deeply politicized issues.
NEWSFLASH: Trump Voters Don't Like Starbucks Coffee
In response to the first question (“How much do you drink Starbucks coffee"), the vast majority of respondents replied with “I don’t have a strong opinion” or “I don’t like it,” 24% and 44% respectively. Digging deeper into each of these sub-groups:
- 57% of those who did not have a strong opinion said that they would vote for Trump if the Presidential election were held today.
- A similar trend is found in the “I don’t like it” subgroup, where an impressive 69% said that they would vote for Trump if the election were held today.
STARBUCKS Lovers? they Voted For Hillary Clinton
Of the only 7% of respondents replied “I love it” and 25% said “I like it”:
- 61% of those who said that they "love" Starbucks also said that they would vote for Clinton if the election were held today.
- Additionally, 53% of those who said “I like it” said that they would vote for Clinton if the Presidential election were held today.
