Starbucks Korea to give mandatory history training to all employees

Key Points:

• Starbucks Korea will close all its stores early on June 22 for mandatory history and social sensitivity training following backlash over a controversial marketing campaign perceived as mocking victims of the 1980 Gwangju military crackdown.
• The campaign promoted stainless-steel tumblers called “SS Tank” and declared May 18 “Tank Day,” coinciding with the anniversary of the pro-democracy uprising violently suppressed by the military government.
• The slogan “Thwack it on the table!” was seen as referencing a 1987 police cover-up of a student activist’s torture death, intensifying public outrage and leading to the campaign’s cancellation and the firing of Starbucks Korea’s CEO.
• Shinsegae Group, which owns a majority stake in Starbucks Korea, announced companywide training led by history and sociology professors and issued a public apology, while police launched an investigation following complaints from victims’ families.
• The Gwangju crackdown was a pivotal event in South Korea’s democratization, occurring after General Chun Doo-hwan’s 1979 coup, with ongoing public sensitivity to the historical trauma and its legacy in the country’s political development.