'Made a mistake:' Philz Coffee backtracks, will now keep Pride flags up
Progress Pride flag displayed on an interior wall at Philz Coffee, with coffee-themed decor and bright orange paint, Bishop Ranch Business Park in San Ramon, California, June 19, 2025. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO - The Pride flags at Philz Coffee are staying up, the company announced in a news release Friday.
‘Made a mistake’
What they're saying:
Following a series of "meaningful, in-person" conversations between Philz Coffee CEO Mahesh Sadarangani and San Francisco Pride Executive Director Suzanne Ford, the San Francisco-born coffee chain retreated on its earlier decision to take the rainbow flags down from its stores, which was first reported April 9 in the San Francisco Chronicle.
"I made a mistake, and I am sincerely sorry," Sadarangani said in a written statement.
He said he realizes that the Pride flag is a symbol of safety and belonging for the LGBTQIA+ community, and the new policy he wanted to enact of taking them down "failed" his customers and the wider community.
He said any Pride flag that was taken down can be put back up.
Sadarangani never fully explained why he wanted the flags taken down.
In a statement to the Chronicle last week, he would only say that Philz "was working toward creating a more consistent, inclusive experience across all our stores, including removing a variety of flags and other decor." At the time, the company did not answer a list of detailed questions the Chronicle sent to its public relations firm.
Philz Coffee removing Pride flags from shops
Bay Area–based coffee chain Philz Coffee is removing Pride flags from all its locations.
But Sadarangani also said that, flags or no flags, the company’s support for the LGBTQIA+ community remains unchanged.
Petition and public
The backstory:
The decision to take the flags drew immediate criticism and an online petition that was reported across the country, from the Today Show to the New York Post.
The company statement said that going forward, each of the company's 82 stores will also feature locally created artwork "shaped by the voices of team members and the neighborhoods they serve, a living expression of the diverse communities Philz is proud to be part of."
In the same statement, Ford applauded the move to reinstall the Pride flags, which she said are especially important now, in a "climate that feels more threatening every day."
Philz Coffee was founded in San Francisco in 2003 and moved its headquarters to Oakland in 2024.