10 Most Hated Companies in America Right Now

8. Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) recently found itself in hot water when a video went viral of two black men being arrested at one of its locations in Philadelphia earlier this month. One of the men asked to use the bathroom, but the staff told him that it’s for paying customers only. When an employee asked the other man if he wanted anything to drink, he explained that they are for a meeting and will be out quickly. After that, someone from the staff called 911 and police officers showed up, cuffed the men and took them out and into the squad car. Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) CEO Kevin Johnson issued an apology following the backlash and the company said it plans to close all 8,000 company-owned stores in the US during the afternoon of May 29 to conduct a racial-bias education program.

Copyright: buschmen / 123RF Stock Photo

Again, while this incident is a singular even, there are people who hate Starbucks more consistently, so to say. There are currently 7.56 million mentions of “hate Starbucks” on Google search. Moreover, the company has an ACSI score of 77 (as of the end of 2017), two points below the average for the industry group. There are many reasons to dislike Starbucks, from forcing smaller competitors out of business by moving into an area with an existing coffee shop to having higher prices than other coffee shops. Nevertheless, Starbucks remains to be one of the largest and most popular coffee shop chains in the world. The recent incident slightly dented Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)’s stock price, but it quickly bounced back.