Starbucks Korea to suspend operations nationwide for staff training over 'Tank Day' controversy
The chain will close all 2,160-plus locations at 3 p.m. Monday for staff training after a marketing campaign that triggered boycotts and the CEO’s dismissal.
A notice announcing the curtailed hours of Starbucks Korea, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., is posted on the entrance of a Starbucks in Jongno District, central Seoul, on June 21.NEWS1
Starbucks Korea is temporarily closing all of its stores at 3 p.m. Monday for companywide staff training in response to a marketing disaster that led to consumer boycotts and the firing of the company's CEO last month.
The early closure affects over 2,160 locations across the country. It is the first time the chain has simultaneously curtailed operating hours at every store since it opened its first Korean outlet in 1999 in Seodaemun District, western Seoul.
Notices have been posted at all stores since last week informing customers of the shortened hours. "We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the reduced operating hours," the company said in the notice. "We will strive to provide a better customer experience."
After stores close, employees are scheduled to watch a training video at their respective locations via monitors provided by headquarters. Staff on leave will be required to complete the training separately online, per Starbucks Korea.
The video features lectures by Oh Je-yeon, a history professor at Sungkyunkwan University, and Koo Jeong-woo, a sociology professor at the same institution. Oh will speak on the theme of "the right historical awareness that companies should have," while Koo will address "social sensitivity and ethical standards."
Members of a civic organization hold a protest against Shinsegae Group, the owner of Starbucks Korea, over the coffee franchise's ″Tank Day″ promotion in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, on May 27. Seen in the picture is the face of Shinsegae Group chairman Chung Yong-jin.YONHAP
A Starbucks Korea spokesperson said the event would go beyond history and social sensitivity training to function as a "brand values workshop" covering the company's mission and values. "Through this approximately three-hour event, we will work to prevent a recurrence of the 'Tank Day' incident," the spokesperson said.
Starbucks Korea ran the Tank Day event on May 18, the anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement. “Tank” is used in far-right online communities as a nickname for Chun Doo Hwan, the former Korean military dictator whose crackdown during the pro-democracy movement left hundreds dead. The promotional materials also used “Tak! on the desk!” The phrase recalls the infamous police statement issued after student activist Park Jong-cheol’s death by torture in 1987. “Tak” is Korean onomatopoeia used to describe a sharp sound, often from one object hitting another, similar to the English language’s “bang.”
Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin, whose conglomerate owns Starbucks Korea, is slated to watch the same training video together with the CEOs of group subsidiaries ahead of a planned executives' meeting on Wednesday.
Starbucks Korea also announced a full overhaul of its internal marketing decision-making system so that risk assessments are conducted from a campaign’s initial planning stage through its approval and implementation. The company will also create a “social sensitivity” checklist and consult external experts to assess potentially sensitive issues involving history, commemorative days, politics, disasters, military matters, gender, violence and hate speech before a campaign’s launch.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
