Galleria Dep't Store hit for lax control of staff

Staffers at Galleria Department Store's VIP lounge stack macarons on their feet. They broadcasted this live on social media on Tuesday, and it went viral online instantly. / Korea times file

By Kim Jae-heun

The Galleria Department Store in Gwanggyo, Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, is in trouble after two staffers at the VIP lounge uploaded live broadcasts of themselves mishandling macarons that were intended for customers to social media.

The live video, showing them playing with the macarons and also using their feet, went viral. The department store installed a sign in front of the VIP lounge carrying an apology, and sent mobile messages to VIP customers promising to prevent such incidents from happening again. It also said the two staffers have been removed from their positions and the VIP lounge will be temporarily closed.

According to Galleria, the two staffers were employees dispatched from one of its subcontractors and the incident took place while the manager of the lounge was absent for a few minutes. The VIP lounge is the largest in the country ― only those who spend over 5 million won ($4,607) at the store annually are permitted to use it.

The department store chain added it will install surveillance cameras in the lounge as a preventive measure and implement an employee education program.

“Such an occurrence was due to individuals' misbehavior but we are still responsible for it. We promise that no such incident will occur again,” a Galleria official said.

Galleria has every reason to take this incident seriously.

The department store operates the least number of branches in the country but its presence in the local market is prominent. It has long been building a reputation as a luxury brand, especially with its symbolic store in Apgujeong in Seoul.

Galleria has long been offering distinguished services for VIP customers, who provide over 40 percent of total revenue.

The ratio has been growing continuously from 38 percent in 2017 to over 40 percent in the first quarter of 2019.

When domestic retailers were struck hard by the COVID-19 pandemic starting last year, Galleria managed to cope well with its largest-ever sales coming from luxury goods.

Last October, the department store opened the VIP-only-space Maison Galleria in Daejeon.