As part of its major expansion plan, Starbucks opened a new branch on Al-Khobar Corniche in the Eastern Province. The official opening ceremony was attended by Director General of the Ministry of Labor and Social Development in the Eastern Province Abdulrahman Bin Fahd Al-Muqbil upon the invitation of Muhammad Abdulaziz Alshaya, the Executive Chairman of Alshaya Group and General Manager Faisal Alshaya. The opening also witnessed the presence of the owners of Ajdan Walk, where the new Starbucks branch is located. The new branch has the largest number of Saudi women working in any one Starbucks branch in the Kingdom. This reflects the company's efforts to promote the role of Saudi women based on Saudi Vision 2030. More than 104 Saudi women now work at Starbucks. Al-Muqbil expressed support for Starbucks' women employment campaign and said he was delighted to see so many Saudi women working in the services sector, especially in the Eastern Province. One of the six Saudi women partners in this branch is Najibah Al Makki, who represented Saudi Arabia in the recent World Barista Championship in London and came in the 4th place. The new branch is Starbuck's 234 branch in Saudi Arabia. — SG
