‘Respect Their Preference’: Starbucks Green-Lights Public’s Use Of Charlie Kirk’s Name On Orders

Starbucks gave the green light for customers to request Charlie Kirk’s name to appear on their coffee cups when placing orders.

The coffee chain went viral after a customer was allegedly told they couldn’t use Kirk’s name on their order “because it’s political.” Starbucks has since clarified its stance, stating that honoring the late Turning Point USA founder in this way is permitted in an official statement. The company confirmed customers are free to use Kirk’s name any time they choose.

A clip posted Tuesday on TikTok seemingly showed a barista in California declining to write Kirk’s name on a cup and quickly amassed nearly one million views. The customer’s order in the footage was a Mint Majesty tea with two honeys — the order that Kirk previously noted as being his go-to drink.

Starbucks swiftly addressed the matter in a statement posted Tuesday on their website. “There are no restrictions on customers using Charlie Kirk’s name on their order, and we are following up with our team,” they wrote.

The company then shared a longer statement the following day in response to “online discussion about our policy for customer names on orders.”

A Starbucks coffee cup and Starbucks coffee beans are seen in this photo taken August 12, 2009. AFP Photo/Paul J. Richards (Photo by Paul J. RICHARDS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images)

“Starbucks is a company built on human connection. Having a name, rather than a number, attached to a customer order has been a core part of the Starbucks coffeehouse experience for decades,” they wrote.

The statement continued, “Most customers use their own name. And when a customer wants to use a different name — including the name Charlie Kirk — when ordering their drink in our café, we aim to respect their preference.”

PHOENIX, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 22: Turning Point USA executive director Charlie Kirk speaks during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest at the Phoenix Convention Center on December 22, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona. The annual four day conference geared toward energizing and connecting conservative youth hosts some of the country’s leading conservative politicians and activists. (Photo by Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)

Starbucks continued, “We aim to be a community coffeehouse where everyone feels welcome, so we have previously provided guidance to our partners to respectfully ask the customer to use a different name when attempting to use political slogans or phrases in place of their name. We are clarifying with our team now that names, on their own, can be used by customers on their café order, as they wish.”

The franchise added, “We believe handwritten notes on our cups are a meaningful way for our baristas to connect with customers.” (RELATED: Celebrities Cry Like Babies Over Jimmy Kimmel Cancelation)

A video shared in July on Facebook by Kirk’s organization captured his Starbucks preference as being “Mint Majesty tea with two honeys.” Kirk said he drank it “because I lose my voice very easily” and added that he had “like nine of them a day.”