UK cafe chain fights rumors it is 'Israel backed' amid rapid expansions

The expansion of Worthing bakery Gail’s has made the chain and its owner the victims of rumors and speculation that the chain is Israel-owned or backs Israel’s "war machine," and is opposed to a ceasefire, The Times reported on Friday.

These rumors have led to immense backlash, leading co-founder and chief executive, Tom Molnar to speak out, calling the claims "ridiculous," according to the report. "Gail’s proudly has Jewish roots and there’s plenty of stuff out there celebrating our heritage and history, but it’s not true it’s Israel-owned," Molnar said, adding, "There’s some just crazy stuff on the web thinking we are funding Israel, which is just completely ridiculous. We’re a wholly UK-based business, paying UK taxes, it’s just ludicrous and I think it needs to be called out."

Molnar went on to deny that the chain’s expansion – which has added a new location every other week – was driving other places out of business, claiming he only wanted to offer consumers more variety.

"We build small sites so they are a part of a diverse high street, so whenever I build a Gail’s I think what it would be like if I was a resident here," he said. "I’d encourage people to look at what we’re trying to do, rather than taglines. There’s good independents and bad, and good chains and bad chains."

As Gail’s owners, including the Pizza Express entrepreneur Luke Johnson and the American investment firm Bain Capital, continued to expand beyond the heartlands, so too has the backlash against the chain.

It has been reported that the owners were considering selling the chain next year but now fear that this misinformation surrounding their expansion may force them to delay.

The backlash has been fueled in part by the false claim that Gail’s is still owned by Israelis.

Author Salma Ibrahim posted to her followers on X, formerly Twitter, "Guys, Gail’s is an Israeli company. Another one to boycott along with Starbucks and Pret." 

However, after she was approached by The Times for comment, Ibrahim said she had not known that Gail’s Israeli founders had left the business, and said that she had deleted her X post.

The Jewish history of Gail’s

Gail’s was founded in the 1990’s by Israeli baker Gail Mejia, and was built into a chain of shops from 2005 by Israeli entrepreneur Ran Avidan, but neither one is attached to the business in 2024.

Protestors have latched on to the fact that after October 7, Bain joined 500 other venture capital firms in signing a letter in support of Israel, as well as the fact that he has several investments in Israel, including in cybersecurity. 

Outside London, the opposition to Gail’s expansion is less political, with the focus being the fear that a chain expansion may lead to independent businesses being run out of business.

Local cafés have expressed concern that Gail’s will kill off their businesses. "Trade has gone down. We are on the edge," Tushar Patel, the new owner of Café Traditionale, said to The Times. "If you look at this side of town some cafés have already shut down, and that was after they allowed Starbucks, Caffe Nero and Trading Post to open."

Additionally, the Worthing Society, which aims to "conserve and preserve" Worthing’s architecture, said the shop design would harm the character of Warwick Street, which includes Stanford’s Cottage where Jane Austen briefly lived in 1805.

However, many locals believe that the cafe’s arrival will have a positive influence, bringing more people, jobs, and choice to the town.

"It’s going to be great when the Gail’s café opens," a woman living next door to the site said, "I’m French so I absolutely love bread, so I’ll probably be in there every day."