British coffee and sandwich chain Pret A Manger canceled a franchise agreement with Israeli partners to open its first branch in the country due to the ongoing war with the Hamas terror group. The coffee chain was set to open at least 40 cafes in Israel over the next decade. The decision comes as large crowds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators have been marching in London on weekends to protest against Israel since the Hamas-led October 7 onslaught on southern Israel that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza.
In a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, Israeli fashion store chain Fox-Wizel Ltd. said that on May 30 the London-based chain canceled the license agreement signed between the parties due to a force majeure event resulting from the war. Fox-Wizel stated that the coffee chain alleged that the war was affecting the “company’s ability to carry out the preliminary actions needed to open operations as set out under the license agreement.
” The force majeure clause of a commercial agreement can be used to terminate a contract if certain obligations are not met. “We have taken the difficult decision to end our current agreement with Fox Group and Yarzin Sella Group,” a Pret spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “We had tried to delay this decision for as long as possible, but the significant ongoing travel restrictions have meant that our teams have not been able to conduct the checks and training needed to set up Pret in a new market.
” “Under the terms of P.
