Two years after the golden arches of McDonald바카라s shone for the first time in Russian Lands, on March 8, the global fast-food chain decided to shut all its 847 stores in the country temporarily amid President Vladimir Putin바카라s war on Ukraine.
McDonald바카라s, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and General Electric ubiquitous global brands and symbols of U.S. corporate announced they were temporarily suspending their business in Russia in response to the country바카라s invasion of Ukraine.
Two years after the golden arches of McDonald바카라s shone for the first time in Russian Lands, on March 8, the global fast-food chain decided to shut all its 847 stores in the country temporarily amid President Vladimir Putin바카라s war on Ukraine.
As a result, People have been flocking at the stores to get that last bite. Although the announcement was made to temporarily close the stores, the unprecedented situation has created a sense of anxiety amongst people. similar to what happened at the peak of Covid-19, when people started hoarding on tissue papers, Russians are hogging on McDonald바카라s supplies and are selling their stock on the internet at the mind boggling prices.
McDonald바카라s, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and General Electric ubiquitous global brands and symbols of U.S. corporate might all announced Tuesday they were temporarily suspending their business in Russia in response to the country바카라s invasion of Ukraine.
바카라Our values mean we cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine,바카라 McDonald바카라s President and CEO Chris Kempczinski said in an open letter to employees.
The Chicago-based burger giant said it will temporarily close 850 stores but continue paying its 62,000 employees in Russia 바카라who have poured their heart and soul into our McDonald바카라s brand.바카라
Kempczinski said it바카라s impossible to know when the company will be able to reopen its stores.
바카라The situation is extraordinarily challenging for a global brand like ours, and there are many considerations,바카라 Kempczinski wrote in the letter. McDonald바카라s works with hundreds of Russian suppliers, for example, and serves millions of customers each day.
Last Friday, Starbucks had said that it was donating profits from its 130 Russian stores __ owned and operated by Kuwait-based franchisee Alshaya Group to humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine. But on Tuesday, the company changed course and said it would temporarily close those stores. Alshaya Group will continue to pay Starbucks바카라 2,000 Russian employees, Starbucks President and CEO Kevin Johnson said in an open letter to employees.
바카라Through this dynamic situation, we will continue to make decisions that are true to our mission and values and communicate with transparency,바카라 Johnson wrote.
Coca-Cola Co. announced it was suspending its business in Russia, but it offered few details. Coke바카라s partner, Switzerland-based Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Co., owns 10 bottling plants in Russia, which is its largest market. Coke has a 21% stake in Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Co.
PepsiCo and General Electric both announced partial shutdowns of their Russian business.
Pepsi, based in Purchase, New York, said it will suspend sales of beverages in Russia. It will also suspend any capital investments and promotional activities.
But the company said it will continue to produce milk, baby formula and baby food, in part to continue supporting its 20,000 Russian employees and the 40,000 Russian agricultural workers who are part of its supply chain.
바카라Now more than ever we must stay true to the humanitarian aspect of our business,바카라 PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta said in an email to employees.
General Electric also said in a Twitter post that it was partially suspending its operations in Russia. GE said two exceptions would be essential medical equipment and support for existing power services in Russia.
McDonald바카라s is among those to take the biggest financial hit. Unlike Starbucks and other fast food companies like KFC and Pizza Hut, whose Russian locations are owned by franchisees, McDonald바카라s owns 84% of its Russian stores. McDonald바카라s has also temporarily closed 108 restaurants it owns in Ukraine and continues to pay those employees.
In a recent regulatory filing, McDonald바카라s said its restaurants in Russia and Ukraine contribute 9% of its annual revenue, or around $2 billion last year.
Yum Brands, the parent company of KFC and Pizza Hut, said late Tuesday it planned to temporarily close 70 company-owned KFC restaurants in Russia. The company said it was also in talks with a franchisee to close all 50 Pizza Hut restaurants in Russia. It had announced Monday that it was donating all of the profits from its 1,050 restaurants in Russia to humanitarian efforts. It has also suspended new restaurant development in the country.
Burger King said it is redirecting the profits from its 800 Russian stores to relief efforts and donating $2 million in food vouchers to Ukrainian refugees.
McDonald바카라s said Tuesday it has donated more than $5 million to its employee assistance fund and to relief efforts. It has also parked a Ronald McDonald House Charities mobile medical care unit at the Polish border with Ukraine; another mobile care unit is en route to the border in Latvia, the company said. PepsiCo said it is donating food, refrigerators and $4 million to relief organizations.
Some of the companies have a long history operating in Russia. PepsiCo entered the Russian market in the early 1960s, at the height of the Cold War, and helped to create common ground between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
Later, McDonald바카라s was one of the first U.S. fast food companies to open a store in Russia, a sign that the Cold War had thawed. On Jan. 31, 1990, thousands of Russians lined up before dawn to try hamburgers __ many for the first time__ at the first McDonald바카라s in Moscow. By the end of the day, 30,000 meals had been rung up on 27 cash registers, an opening-day record for the company.
But since the Ukraine invasion last month, many corporations have ceased operations in Russia in protest. Among them is consumer goods conglomerate Unilever, which on Tuesday said it has suspended all imports and exports of its products into and out of Russia, and that it will not invest any further capital into the country. In a more limited move, Amazon said Tuesday the company바카라s cloud computing network, Amazon Web Services, will stop allowing new sign-ups in Russia and Belarus.
Pressure had been mounting on companies that remained in the country. Hashtags to boycott companies like McDonald바카라s, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo quickly emerged on social media.
Last week, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli __ a trustee of the state바카라s pension fund, which is a McDonald바카라s investor __ sent letters to McDonald바카라s, PepsiCo and eight other companies urging them to consider pausing their operations in Russia.
바카라Companies doing business in Russia need to seriously consider whether it바카라s worth the risk. As investors, we want assurances that our holdings are not in harms way,바카라 DiNapoli said Tuesday in a statement. 바카라I commend the companies that are taking the right steps and suspending their operations in Russia.바카라
In his letter, Kempczinski cited influential former McDonald바카라s Chairman and CEO Fred Turner, whose mantra was, 바카라Do the right thing.바카라
바카라There are countless examples over the years of McDonald바카라s Corp. living up to Fred바카라s simple ideal. Today is one of those days,바카라 Kempczinski said.
(With Inputs From AP)