While the Dutch paint Cape Town orange, the Johannesburg Mail & Guardian raises questions about why Starbucks chose Emperica Marketing as the business partner for its first retail venture at several hotels in that country.

"David Taylor, director of Emperica Marketing, which secured the Starbucks contract for the South African market, is at the centre of a controversy surrounding the liquidation of Tiffindell ski resort. The future of the resort is still in jeopardy after an investment by Taylor went belly up and investors in the resort are hopping mad, threatening to sue Taylor and his business partner, Andre le Roux, for their losses," Yolandi Groenewald writes.

She quotes Taylor as having said (possibly in another article), "With regard to my personal involvement in the matter, you should note that I was never a director of Tiffindell Limited and that I was not personally the subject of any litigation," he said. "I was a director of the property holding company, Tiffski (Pty) Ltd until January 2010."