By Heather Haddon and Jaewon Kang
Macy's Inc. delayed the reopening of some stores shut by the
coronavirus pandemic. Chains from Kroger Co. to Popeyes have cut
back their hours. And the CEOs of Starbucks Corp. and McDonald's
Corp. organized companywide forums to discuss the social unrest
that has disrupted efforts to restart business as pandemic
lockdowns ease.
After widespread protests over the death of George Floyd while
in police custody, CEOs were looking for ways to balance their
efforts to run their companies, protect their employees and
property, and articulate a response to their customers, staff and
communities about racism and deep-seated problems in American
society. For many, it followed months of struggles to restart their
businesses after the crippling global pandemic.
"Right when we get over one hump, here comes something new to
deal with, " said Reynolds Cramer, chief executive of Fareway Foods
Inc., a Midwest grocery chain in six states. In addition to
adjusting hours to close early, Fareway told its store managers to
close doors or not open right away in the morning if it is unsafe
to do so.
"It is scary. It's frustrating. It's such a terrible thing," Mr.
Cramer said. "You feel terrible for these people who have done
nothing wrong and their businesses are being destroyed."
Macy's postponed the reopening of four stores that were slated
to open their doors Monday until later in the week due to the
violence. Over the weekend, 30 stores either closed entirely or
closed early, including those in Atlanta and Minneapolis. Early
closures took place in cities with curfews to give employees time
to get home. In cities where stores hadn't reopened yet such as
Chicago, rioters broke windows and looted merchandise, according to
a spokeswoman.
In a letter to employees, Macy's CEO Jeff Gennette urged
staffers to look out for one another. "Check on your teams and
fellow colleagues -- both furloughed and nonfurloughed," he wrote.
"Be each other's ally and seek help when you need it."
Some Burger King and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen locations were
damaged during the weekend's protests, and restaurants have closed
early in some areas to protect workers and customers, said Jose
Cil, chief executive of parent company Restaurants Brands
International Inc.
"There is no place for racism in America, and every company,
every public institution and every individual needs to take
accountability for calling it out by name and stopping it," Mr. Cil
said.
McDonald's plans to hold a company town hall meeting Tuesday to
allow U.S. employees to tell executives what the burger giant can
do to foster more racial inclusion and corporate outreach.
"As a company, we have a responsibility to recognize the pain
felt by so many and to fight racism and discrimination in our
communities," McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a message to
the company Sunday evening.
Starbucks held a forum over the weekend for employees to talk
about the death of George Floyd and racially motivated violence,
and 2,000 employees participated, CEO Kevin Johnson said in a
company letter. Mr. Johnson said the company will continue to hold
forums for workers to share their responses.
The uncertainty is adding to challenges that food retailers have
managed since the coronavirus started spreading in the U.S.
Supermarkets have adjusted hours and operations to respond to the
pandemic, implementing capacity limits and new safety measures.
"We're trying hard to close the stores that would be impacted
well in advance," said Kevin Holt, chief executive of Ahold
Delhaize USA, which operates more than 2,000 grocery stores across
the country under the Stop & Shop, Giant and Food Lion chains.
"We continue to be heartbroken over this."
While a small number of Ahold's stores have been affected, the
protests and the sentiment of outrage are growing, Mr. Holt said.
Over the weekend, the grocer closed a handful of its locations
early to comply with local curfews. The chain is also reaching out
to its employees through robocalls and other methods to check
in.
"In terms of the pandemic, this could also cause a lot more
infection," Mr. Holt said. "We just don't know what tomorrow will
bring. We will have to deal with that as we go through it."
Daniel Halpern, chief executive of the Jackmont Hospitality Inc.
restaurant group, said he closed two TGI Fridays locations in
Atlanta and Baltimore over the weekend to conform with local
curfews. Coronavirus has hurt sales at the group's airport
restaurants -- nearly all of them remaining closed -- and at its 30
TGI Fridays.
"If you look at where the country is today, we as business
leaders have failed. I'm pointing fingers at myself and all
leaders. We have to do a better job" to push for economic and
racial equality, said Mr. Halpern, a Democratic National Committee
board member.
Mr. Halpern, who is Native American, said he doesn't support
violence, but that he sympathizes with the need for protesters to
demonstrate. "Minority-owned businesses are being damaged. Minority
businesses hire people from their communities. But capitalism only
works if everyone has a shot," he said.
The restaurant industry needs to do more to encourage diversity,
including at the top, he said. "We can't fix these institutional
issues with Band-Aids. When I go to restaurant conferences, there
are very few black and brown franchisees, and fewer black and brown
CEOs," he said. "It's not a question if there's qualified people
out there. They aren't in the club."
Jide Zeitlin, the CEO of Tapestry Inc., wrote a letter to his
staff to share his personal experience as one of the few black men
to run a major U.S. company. He also reported that Coach and Kate
Spade stores had been damaged in cities across the country from
Charleston, S.C., and Washington, D.C., to Scottsdale, Ariz., and
Bellevue, Wash.
"Has our society truly left them with little to lose and few
other ways to force the rest of us to come to the negotiating
table?" he wrote. "We can replace our windows and handbags, but we
cannot bring back George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Eric
Garner, Trayvon Martin, Emmett Till, and too many others."
--Suzanne Kapner contributed to this article.
Write to Heather Haddon at heather.haddon@wsj.com and Jaewon
Kang at jaewon.kang@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 01, 2020 16:32 ET (20:32 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.