Amid rising pressure on businesses to respond to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and Starbucks said on Tuesday that they were pausing operations in Russia.
McDonald’s has nearly 850 restaurants in Russia, including those that it owns and those that are owned by franchisees. Starbucks’s restaurants there are owned and operated by the Kuwaiti conglomerate Alshaya Group.
McDonald’s opened its first restaurant in Russia in Moscow’s Pushkin Square in 1990 and became a symbol of Western culture to the Russian people.
“For 66 years, we have operated with the belief that communities are made better when there’s a McDonald’s nearby,†Chris Kempczinski, the company’s chief executive, said in a statement. He noted the company employed 62,000 people in the country, worked with hundreds of local Russian suppliers and partners, and served millions of Russian customers each day.
“In the 30-plus years that McDonald’s has operated in Russia, we’ve become an essential part of the 850 communities in which we operate,†he said.
Individuals on social media and investors have ramped up pressure on businesses to pull out of Russia, especially fast-food chains, which have been criticized for lagging behind other companies with decisions about their Russia operations.
“Companies doing business in Russia need to seriously consider whether it’s worth the risk,†Thomas P. DiNapoli, the head of the New York State pension fund, one of the world’s largest and most influential investors, said in a statement. “I commend the companies that are taking the right steps and suspending their operations in Russia.â€
McDonald’s said it would continue to pay salaries for McDonald’s employees in Russia, as it has for its employees in Ukraine. Starbucks said its licensing partner in Russia would provide “support†to the nearly 2,000 employees in Russia.
McDonald’s will feel a financial impact from the move. Although the Russian operations make up only 3 percent of its operating income, they make up 9 percent of its revenue.
