ZUS Coffee Issues Public Apology & Denies Collab With Sportswear Brand On Boycott List
"ZUS Coffee will never knowingly associate ourselves with war and unequivocally condemns any acts of violence against humanity," the company said in a statement.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 16 May 2024, 05:15 PM
ZUS Coffee has issued an apology statement today, 16 May, after netizens accused them of collaborating with a sportswear brand that is currently being boycotted in Malaysia
In the statement, ZUS Coffee clarified that they did not collaborate with the sportswear brand, asserting that it was an "one-off activity" with the brand in question.
"We heard your concerns about our participation at a recent sports-fashion event. This was a one-off activity, where we were signed up to sell our coffee for the enjoyment of fellow Malaysians.
"The giveaway was also a one-off activity. We wish to make clear that it was not a collaboration. Nevertheless, we hear you, and we should have known better," it said.
"As a home-grown Malaysian brand, we hold ourselves to the highest levels of integrity. ZUS Coffee will never knowingly associate ourselves with war and unequivocally condemns any acts of violence against humanity.
"We will exercise greater vigilance and care in our conduct, in the activities we undertake, and the brands we associate with. To prevent a repeat, we are taking every necessary action to fortify our policies and procedures to ensure best practices.
"We are sorry and humbly apologise for the oversight. This will never happen again," read the statement.
On Wednesday, 15 May, a tweet with the caption "Bye bye, ZUS Coffee" went viral with over 1.3 million views
The tweet displays two screenshots of ZUS Coffee's now-deleted social media posts that featured the coffee brand alongside the sportswear brand.
The coffee brand is said to have recently conducted a giveaway contest on Instagram, giving three lucky winners a pair of sneakers each from the sportswear brand.
The sportswear brand is currently being boycotted for working with an Israeli manufacturer to produce its undergarment products.
The brand has also received flak for featuring an Israeli chef in one of its recent marketing campaigns.
