Starbucks Did Not Open a New Place Called Vista at Dublin Airport to Trick Boycott Campaigns
The Claim
It is still Starbucks they've just rebranded the name of the café to try and avoid the ongoing boycott . If you zoom in you can see the Starbucks menu , plus they're still using Starbucks cups ! There's also zero online presence for "Vista Coffee" . It doesn't exist at all guys.
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Emerging story
News sites, social media accounts, and pages have been sharing a picture of the café lounge at Dublin International Airport in Ireland. The image shows the replacement of Starbucks logos, facing widespread boycott calls due to its support for Israel, with a new brand called 'Vista.' The new brand maintains the same drinks menu as Starbucks, and users have described this move by the international brand as a 'trick' to attract boycotting customers through a name change.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the circulating claim and found it to be misleading. The contract that tied Starbucks to Dublin International Airport in Ireland had expired, and the brand left in December 2023. It also found that “Vista” is a different brand than Starbucks.
Renovation at Dublin International Airport
On January 4, Dublin Airport announced the opening of a new café called "Vista Coffee" at Terminal 1, replacing the previous Starbucks unit.
The airport also underlined that the place is one of “the new and enhanced food and beverage offers” which will be available at Dublin airport in 2024, inviting readers to expect more details.
On the following day, and as the claim that Starbucks changed its name spread, the airport published a clarification saying that “Vista” is a temporary brand as “Starbucks closed in December as their contract expired. A new local brand will permanently move into this unit in March. Until then, the new operator (using Starbucks products) will run the café as Vista, ensuring pax get their coffee fix."
The airport administration stated that this change is part of a comprehensive reform of the food and beverage offers in Terminals 1 and 2 that will occur in the upcoming months. As per the airport's plans, this will entail the temporary operation of various units under generic brands for brief periods, while the final preparations are underway.
Generic brands are used by business owners either because they cannot afford to create and design a private brand or for projects that do not require large budgets and extensive marketing efforts. Commonly employed during times of recession, these brands are characterized by very simple names and designs, often in black and white, as evident in the "Vista" brand.
On January 10, Dublin airport published the promised details about its plan to add and replace 23 brands in the food and beverage sections of its lounges in 2024, under the “Latest News” section of its official website.
The airport statement mentioned that a number of famous local and international brands will enter a hall at the airport in 2024, such as “Nomad,” “Street Kitchen,” and “Cantina,” in addition to the “Blue Bird” cafe, which will replace the former Starbucks outlet closed at the end of December.
In Misbar's search for Blue Bird's official social media pages, it was found that the cafe introduces itself as an "Irish café and coffee roastery, serving delicious food and sweet treats. Located in UCD Dublin and Cork Airport."
Further investigation into Cork International Airport's official website revealed an announcement at the end of December 2019. The airport declared itself as the first in Ireland to roast its own coffee beans, opening a permanent cafe named 'Blue Bird.' The joint, managed by KSG Catering, is the second 'Blue Bird' joint in Ireland and the first outside of Dublin (the UCD joint).
While examining the KSG commercial group, which is considered the biggest company operating and managing restaurants and cafés in Ireland, and which transparently shows through its official website the names of the members of its team and its business activities, Misbar did not find any overlap between its management and employees and those of Starbucks café franchise, whether the mother company in the United States or its branches in Britain and Ireland. It also did not find any business cooperation between the two companies.
KSG is not involved in any activity related to selling, operating, or using the Starbucks brand. The Starbucks agency in Ireland is owned by Tanrat, a Dublin-based company.
Internal Fumble at Starbucks Amid Boycott Campaigns
Starbucks, much like several other multinational companies, including McDonalds, is facing a boycott campaign due to its support for Israel in the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023.
In addition, the café franchise has filed a lawsuit against its workers' union, known as the “Starbucks Workers Union," alleging they “unlawfully using the company’s commercial brand." This action came after the union published a post on X -which was later deleted- that included the phrase “solidarity with Palestine!"
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