Utopia Talk / Politics / Great victory against Chick-fil-A in UK

Victim Member	Sun Oct 20 02:56:45 http://www...se-just-6-months-after-opening First Chick-fil-A in the UK to close just 6 months after opening amid LGBTQ protests The first Chick-fil-A in the United Kingdom announced it would be shutting down in six months, just days after the popular American fast-food chain made its debut in the country, amid pressures from gay rights activists protesting the chain for contributing millions of dollars to anti-LGBTQ groups. Protestors swarmed The Oracle shopping center on Saturday holding a sign saying "GET THE CHICK OUT Say NO to bigotry and hatred on your High Street. The store opened its "pilot" location on Oct. 10 in Reading, which is about an hour and a half drive from London. A mall spokesperson said concerns raised by activists about the chain have made them determine "the right thing to do" is not to extend the restaurant's lease beyond the "six-month pilot period," according to reports by BBC. The restaurant has long faced pushback from LGBTQ groups who have attacked CEO Dan Cathy after he repeatedly made comments condemning homosexuality and gay marriage and donating $1.8 million in 2017 to groups that spread anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, according to reports by Think Progress. Chick-fil-A defended the donations saying they were intended to “help with economic mobility of young people by focusing on homelessness and poverty, education, and community revitalization, and is done with no political or social agenda,” according to a company statement in March. Cathy has openly said that America is "inviting God’s judgment on our nation when we shake our fist at him and say we know better than you as to what constitutes a marriage," in a 2012 radio interview. "I pray God’s mercy on our generation that has such a prideful, arrogant attitude that thinks we have the audacity to redefine what marriage is all about," he added at the time. CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP Cathy later doubled down on his comments saying he is "guilty as charged" in his discriminatory beliefs. Chick-fil-A has launched another international storefront in Canada in September, which also drew a bevy of protestors over the same issues.
superdude Member	Sun Oct 20 11:20:39 Apparently your NOT pro gay enough if you eat a sandwich.
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 11:31:57 "A mall spokesperson said concerns raised by activists about the chain have made them determine "the right thing to do" is not to extend the restaurant's lease beyond the "six-month pilot period," according to reports by BBC." You have to love when kowtowing to SJWs takes precedence over keeping your retail properties leased up. Because, you know, it's not like the UK shopping mall sector isn't currently in the midst of a major downturn or anything... " UK shopping centre investment hits 16-year low Buyers struggle to assign values to properties affected by retailers restructuring leases April 29 2019 The market for UK shopping centres has all but frozen up as buyers struggle to assign values to properties affected by troubled retailers restructuring their leases. Just £20m of shopping centres changed hands in the first quarter of this year, according to data from CoStar, against a 10-year quarterly average of £783m. That was the weakest quarter since at least 2003 and “probably this century”, said Mark Stansfield, head of UK analytics at CoStar." http://www...a4-6835-11e9-9adc-98bf1d35a056 ...oh.
Seb Member	Sun Oct 20 13:34:53 Rugian: You are surpprised that people don't sell their values as cheaply as you sold out eh?
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 13:41:33 My values about eating fried chicken?
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 13:48:23 Seb, If I was thin-skinned enough to boycott every single company that advocated a political position which I didn't agree with, I doubt I'd be able to function in normal society. Fortunately for myself, I'm not a little bitch.
tumbleweed the wanderer	Sun Oct 20 14:00:07 most are smart enough not to advocate political positions if Denny's came out pro-impeachment they'd be in trouble too
Wrath of Orion Member	Sun Oct 20 14:09:52 Ah yes, Rugian the rugged, thick-skinned man that is never affected by anything. Oh the irony...
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 14:12:49 tumbleweed the wanderer Sun Oct 20 14:00:07 most are smart enough not to advocate political positions Tell that to Citi, Walmart or Dick's (re: guns). Or to the multitude of companies who took the opposite route of Chik Fil A's, namely by pandering to gay rights in some form. And let's not forget these gems from Budweiser and Gillette: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koPmuEyP3a0 http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/bud-light-tackles-gender-pay-equality-ad/304700 Or just saunter over to a local theater and see how long it takes for a movie to deliver some preachy leftist commentary to its audience. Hell, here's one of the largest online knitting sites in the world banning pro-Trump content: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/jun/24/white-supremacy-popular-knitting-website-ravelry-bans-support-for-trump The point being that it's more accurate to say that most companies "are smart enough not to advocate CONSERVATIVE political positions." Leftist political positions, on the other hand, are routinely advocated.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 14:17:46 Ruggy Why did the franchise only have a 6 month probationary lease in the first place? Your 2nd link explains the reasons why btw. Other leaseholders would begin renegotiating their leases or moving at the first sniff of a mall boycott.
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 14:27:45 jergul, First off, I think you overestimate the actual economic impact of SJW protestors. Noise is only as effective as you allow it. And secondly, for the record I'm glad these protestors were able to get an Abu Dhabi Investment Authority-owned mall to evict a gay marriage-hating company. We can't have that sort of business in our communities after all.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 14:36:13 Ruggy I think the other lease-holders would have leveraged the crap out of a lease extension and that the management company running the mall was aware of that risk from the start. Hence the probationary lease in the first place.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 14:37:05 This is pretty basic business stuff ruggy.
tumbleweed the wanderer	Sun Oct 20 14:46:19 i'm sure the businesses curbing gun or ammo sale have heard from plenty of angry rednecks & people boycotted & tossed out/burned NFL gear because of kneelers... my uncle was one, so i know it happened "Leftist political positions, on the other hand, are routinely advocated." being on the right side of history might be more accurate... gays aren't going away, not bullying & treating women well isn't too political, & Trump is objectively an awful President & human
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 14:55:08 jergul, Your unfounded leaps to conclusions aside (you have no ideal what the original rationale for the pilot period was), your premise is factually incorrect. Chick-Fil-A fields protestors in pretty much any community where there happens to be a gay rights organization (gays are an incredibly whiny group after all). Prior experience tells us that protests don't have a material impact on the bottom line (which is considerable for the company's line of business, btw). Basically, fag protestors can only force closures if you let them. But anyway. I for one remain glad that this Abu Dhabi Investment Authority-owned mall managed to get the gay-haters out of dodge.
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 14:55:19 tw, There is no such thing as a "right side of history."
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 15:11:03 Ruggy The choice here was betweem losing money from other businesses or not renewing the chicken lease. But noted that you do not seem to have much business acumen.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 15:16:32 Its managed by a Hammersons daughter company btw. You know, the company that owns the other 50% of the shopping complex with 104 leasees.
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 15:22:09 jergul, "The choice here was betweem losing money" [Citation needed] "But noted that you do not seem to have much business acumen." Says the European socialist? "Its managed by a Hammersons daughter company btw. You know, the company that owns the other 50% of the shopping complex with 104 leasees." And?
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 15:25:29 http://www...a4-6835-11e9-9adc-98bf1d35a056
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 15:27:36 jergul, I've already acknowledged (indeed, I was the one to point out) that the UK shopping mall sector is not in a good place at the moment. That's not the same thing as proving that Chick Fil A presents a meaningful drag on profits.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 15:30:43 Ruggy Yes, indeed "And?" You seemed to want to high-light mall ownership structure for some reason, so I posted the other owner and demonstrated it was the partner with active control of the complex. You should check Hammersons out for corporate bigotry. There is bound to be something. And use it to fuel your whataboutery. And, yah, says the European Socialist. Who has consistently state that capitalism is a very useful tool, just don't mistake it for an ideology or have it as a religion.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 15:33:10 Ruggy It demonstrates clearly that that last thing a complex with 104 leaseholders should do is give them leverage to renegotiate their leases. This is pretty basic business stuff. Don't give away leverage. Yes, indeed "And?" You seemed to want to high-light mall ownership structure for some reason, so I posted the other owner and demonstrated it was the partner with active control of the complex. You should check Hammersons out for corporate bigotry. There is bound to be something. And use it to fuel your whataboutery. And, yah, says the European Socialist. Who has consistently state that capitalism is a very useful tool, just don't mistake it for an ideology or have it as a religion.
Rugian Member	Sun Oct 20 15:37:39 jergul, Which again brings us back to your overvaluing of the practical impact of protestors. It's hardly whataboutism to point out the hypocrisy of advocating that a property tenant should be forced out of business due to its anti-gay beliefs, but being totally cool with the property landlord being 50% owned by a major Islamic investment group. If you were a good capitalist, you wouldn't be in Norway.
jergul large member	Sun Oct 20 15:47:12 Ruggy Your theory is that Hammersons' management company made a mistake. My theory is that they made a good call given the market situation and a trend towards lease renegotiations across the board anyway. There are other theories. Perhaps Abu dhabi is uncomfortable leasing to such a blatantly Christian corporation that uses its profits to profilate that faith? Could that have impacted on the decision. It is whataboutism. Norway is ranked one slot ahead of the US in terms of "ease of doing business". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ease_of_doing_business_index I am not a capitalist as capitalism is merely a tool (in the one sense. In the classic meaning, I do not control significant means of production, so would not be a capitalist by that understanding either). To me, it would be like a carpenter calling himself a hammer. Its crazy talk.
Dickhead UPer Member	Mon Oct 21 05:16:55 "First off, I think you overestimate the actual economic impact of SJW protestors. Noise is only as effective as you allow it. " Exactly! Those sit-ins in the 60s did not have an impact at all. Why was it ever allowed?
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