H&M, Starbucks to stay in Morocco

Kuwait’s Al Shaya group which operates Swedish ready-to-wear stores H&M and US brand café chain Starbucks in the MENA region and in Europe said it maintains business in Morocco, denying news reports that it was going to phase out from the country.

Last week, Maroc Hebdo weekly said the Kuwaiti group will withdraw the two brands from Morocco, citing slow business.

In a statement relayed by Moroccan media, Al Shaya said the two brands will stay in the north African Kingdom.

The group continues to “make regular assessments of its portfolio in order to guarantee an adequate operation of its stores in places most convenient for its clients,” Al Shaya told Le360 news outlet without elaborating.

Starbucks was among the brands targeted by a boycott campaign waged mostly by Islamist groups in solidarity with Gaza.