Malaysian businessman and founder of conglomerate Berjaya Corporation Berhad, Vincent Tan, has called for Starbucks boycotts in Malaysia to stop.

Speaking during a media interview on Mar. 3, he said that the Starbucks franchise in Malaysia is owned by Malaysian company Berjaya Food Berhad (BFood), reported New Straits Times.

BFood, a company under Berjaya Corporation Berhad, manages other food franchise businesses in Malaysia such as Jollibean and Paris Baguette.

Tan said that such boycotts only affect the livelihood of Malaysians.

According to The Star, Tan said Muslim employees make up 85 per cent of the workers at Starbucks Malaysia outlets.

"We don’t even have one foreigner working in head office or stores. So, I think this boycott doesn’t benefit anyone,” he said.

However, Tan said there has been some improvement in sales, and expects continued improvement in the current quarter due to changing consumer attitudes.

Tan said:

“[Starbucks Malaysia] is just a franchise and it is not owned by Americans, so it is an unnecessary boycott and we believe it will go away. Maybe in some countries Starbucks America got shares, but they have no shares in Starbucks Malaysia."

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