The chief executive of Starbucks Korea has been dismissed after a controversial promotional campaign triggered public backlash and accusations that it referenced one of South Korea’s darkest historical tragedies.
The campaign, launched on Monday by Starbucks Korea, promoted a series of coffee tumblers under the name “Tank Day”, a phrase many South Koreans linked to the military crackdown during the 1980 Gwangju Uprising.
The timing of the promotion drew immediate criticism as it coincided with the anniversary of the deadly suppression of pro-democracy protesters in the southern city of Gwangju, where military tanks and armed troops were deployed by the regime of former president Chun Doo-hwan.
Public anger quickly spread across social media, with many users calling for a boycott of Starbucks Korea and its parent conglomerate Shinsegae.
Following mounting outrage, Shinsegae apologised for what it described as “inappropriate marketing” and announced the dismissal of Starbucks Korea chief executive Sohn Jeong-hyun.
The company also pulled the promotion just hours after it went live.
According to reports, the “Tank Series” tumblers were originally marketed as products with “spacious volume” designed to hold larger amounts of coffee. Starbucks Korea later clarified that the tumbler line was part of a wider promotional campaign running from May 15 to May 26.
In its apology, the company admitted the campaign had caused concern among customers and promised to improve internal review procedures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Starbucks headquarters in the United States also issued a public apology, acknowledging that although the incident was unintentional, it should never have happened.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung was among those who strongly condemned the campaign, accusing the company of insulting the victims and trivialising the painful struggle for democracy in the country.
He described the promotion as inhumane and said it disregarded South Korea’s core values of democracy and human rights.
The Gwangju Uprising remains one of South Korea’s most sensitive historical events. Hundreds of civilians are believed to have been killed during the military crackdown on May 18, 1980, while later investigations also uncovered cases of torture, rape and sexual violence committed by troops.
The movement later became a symbol of resistance and helped pave the way for South Korea’s democratic reforms in 1987.
Some critics also claimed the campaign referenced another historic tragedy linked to the country’s democracy movement through the use of the Korean phrase “tak on the table”.
The word “tak” was infamously associated with a 1987 police statement attempting to explain the death of a student activist who actually died from torture during interrogation.
Shinsegae chairman Chung Yong-jin later described the campaign as an “inexcusable mistake” that belittled the sacrifices made by those who fought for South Korea’s democracy.
He pledged to launch a full investigation into how the campaign was approved and said the company would review marketing processes across all its subsidiaries.
