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Police raid Starbucks' South Korean HQ
over ad campaign that evoked massacre
[August 06, 2026]
By HYUNG-JIN KIM
SEOUL,
South Korea (AP) — South Korean police raided the headquarters of
Starbucks’ local operation as part of an investigation into a
controversial marketing campaign that was perceived as defaming 1980s'
pro-democracy movements. |
A Starbucks sign is seen outside the coffee company's global corporate
headquarters, May 11, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File) |
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Investigators searched the Starbucks headquarters in southern
Seoul on Tuesday, police said Wednesday.
Police gave no further details, but South Korean media reported
investigators also were sent to the residences of Starbucks
executives.
The coffee chain triggered a public uproar when it attempted to
promote a series of stainless-steel tumblers it called “SS Tank”
by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” The date marks the
anniversary of a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southern
city of Gwangju that was brutally oppressed by South Korea's
then military-backed rulers.
The campaign also used the slogan “Thwack it on the table!”
which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police
statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of
student activist Park Jong-chol. Authorities had falsely said
Park died after investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.”
The public outrage prompted Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5%
stake in Starbucks Korea, to cancel the campaign within hours.
It also fired the chief executive of Starbucks Korea. Shinsegae
Chairman Chung Yong-jin later issued a televised apology.
Starbucks Korea closed all of its stores nationwide early on
June 22 for mandatory history and social sensitivity training.
The police investigation was launched following complaints from
relatives of the victims of the Gwangju crackdown, which
official records say left about 200 people dead.
South Korea achieved a genuine democracy in 1987 when then
authoritarian President Chun Doo-hwan, who led the Gwangju
crackdown, was forced to accept a constitutional revision
introducing direct presidential elections in the face of massive
pro-democracy demonstrations.
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