A Starbucks marketing stunt spiralled into mass boycotts in South Korea
10 hours ago
- #Marketing Crisis
- #Corporate Accountability
- #Historical Sensitivity
- Starbucks Korea launched a marketing campaign on May 18 called 'Tank Day' for a tumbler named 'Tank', coinciding with the anniversary of the Gwangju massacre, causing public outrage.
- The campaign's slogan 'thwack on the desk' echoed a police cover-up from a 1987 torture death, further inflaming sensitivities and highlighting a failure in historical awareness.
- CEO Son Jeong-hyun was fired and chairman Chung Yong-jin apologized publicly, but backlash continued, including protests, smashed products, and financial impacts like a 26% drop in card payments.
- The controversy turned political, with government agencies cutting ties and political figures condemning the incident, while legal actions were pursued against executives for insulting victims.
- Starbucks Corporation expressed deep regret, acknowledging the unintentional but unacceptable offense, and promised to review internal standards and training to prevent future incidents.