A woman questioned if a “regular” coffee shop is actually a Starbucks in disguise after seeing a “We Proudly Serve” sign with the company’s logo in the store.
Content creator Leah Simone (@realleahsimone) is one of many thousands of people boycotting Starbucks due to the company’s lawsuit against the union representing its workers, Starbucks Workers United, for a pro-Palestine social media post made by the union’s X account in October.
The Starbucks boycott is part of a larger sea of company boycotts by pro-Palestine consumers. A few other brands facing boycotts, notably guided by the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) Movement, are Hewlett-Packard (HP), Puma, SodaStream, McDonald’s, Papa John’s, Burger King, and Domino’s.
In Leah’s video, the TikTok creator seeks to ensure she’s not buying coffee from a Starbucks store. The video features text that reads, “I’m trying to boycott Starbucks and they HIDING.”
“Guys, I’m trying to get a coffee right? And you know, I’m like, boycotting Starbucks right now. So let me show you. Let me show you something,” she says.
Leah flips the camera to the register of what looks to be a non-Starbucks coffee shop.
“I’m like, oh this looks like a regular-degular coffee place, and all I see is this,” Leah says as she zooms in on the one Starbucks logo placed on the back wall behind the counter. The label reads, “We proudly serve,” followed by the Starbucks logo. Leah finds a smaller version of the same sign in the bottom corner of the menu above the register.
“Are you or are you not a f*cking Starbucks? ‘Cause I’m not supporting it. Like somebody f*cking tell me right now,” she says, panning the shop one more time.
@realleahsimone Someone let me know what “we proudly serve starbucks” means on the scale. Is it a starbucks or not 😂 #starbucksboycott2023 #freepalestine #nostarbucksforme #starbucksboycott
♬ original sound – LEAH SIMONE + ANT (sometimes)
The video has received over 293,000 views as of Tuesday morning.
“Not Starbucks being transformers,” one user quipped in the comments.
Other commenters assured that the shop was not a Starbucks store but did sell Starbucks products.
“It’d be like buying Starbucks products at your local Target or anything like that, like the fridge ones. While it’s not directly a Starbucks store, it still benefits their pockets,” a second user reasoned.
“Proudly Serves aren’t Starbucks stores. They essentially license the rights to use from Starbucks to some of their products (beans, syrups, etc.)” a third person explained.
One user on Reddit argued that “We Proudly Serve Starbucks” stores aren’t licensed stores. “The ‘We Proudly Serve’ places are almost completely separate from Starbucks, and simply serve some of the same beverages / use the same beans. They can also have completely seperate (non-Starbucks) menu items, differnt prices, even different ways of making the drinks. (The flat whites at my hospital, for instance, don’t use ristretto shots.),” they said in response to a redditor who asked for clarification surrounding what it means to be a “We Proudly Serve Starbucks” store.
However, for some viewers, the coffee shop’s association with Starbucks was enough to keep away.
“Idgaf, guilty by association…like your mama always said, be careful when picking your friends,” one user declared.
“Aye my policy is if it got the green white lady, that jawn DEFINITELY shady,” came another reply.
Leah responded to this comment with a laughing emoji, writing simply, “Bible.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Leah Simone via Instagram message for more information as well as to Starbucks via email.