Marketing on a tightrope: Korean businesses fear becoming next Starbucks

Protesters calling for a nationwide boycott campaign against Starbucks hold placards during a press conference at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, May 27. Yonhap

This is how one longtime retail industry professional, identified as Mr. A, described the nature of marketing work. He made the remark while reflecting on the controversy surrounding Starbucks Korea's recent "Tank Day" event, which sparked widespread criticism for allegedly mocking the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising.

According to him, campaigns that carry no risk often fail to attract consumer attention, while those that prioritize shock value or entertainment can easily trigger unforeseen controversies. As a result, marketers are constantly engaged in a delicate balancing act.

"If it succeeds, it's a huge hit. If it goes wrong, it's a disaster," he said. "The greater the pressure to produce results, the greater the chance of making mistakes. Marketers must always remain sensitive and aware of the potential social impact of their campaigns."

The fear of making a costly mistake is no longer just a personal concern for marketing professionals. Companies themselves are increasingly worried that they could become the next target of public outrage.

The Starbucks incident has prompted renewed discussion of previous marketing fiascos involving other major Korean companies, including controversies surrounding advertising campaigns by companies such as Musinsa and GS25.

As older incidents are being revisited in public discussions, some companies have reportedly begun reviewing past promotional materials and advertising campaigns in an effort to identify potential risks before they become major problems.

One of the most prominent companies to be "dug up" and reexamined was Musinsa. Promotional material that had drawn heavy criticism in 2019 was suddenly thrust back into the spotlight.

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with senior aides at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, May 28. Yonhap

The renewed controversy began on May 20, two days after the Starbucks Korea "May 18 Tank Day" scandal erupted, when President Lee Jae Myung shared and criticized a seven-year-old Musinsa card-news-style advertisement on X (formerly Twitter).

The ad featured a photo of slipper-style socks alongside the slogan:

"Quick-drying — when I slammed the desk, it dried with an 'ugh.'"

The phrase was a play on the infamous official explanation given by the National Police Agency headquarters following the torture death of democracy activist Park Jong-chul in January 1987. At the time, authorities falsely claimed that he had let out an "ugh" and died suddenly after an investigator slammed a desk — a claim that later became infamous as a symbol of the regime's attempted cover-up. Given that historical context, a fierce public backlash was inevitable.

At the time of the original controversy, Musinsa managed to contain the damage through a concise, straightforward public apology and what many viewed as sincere follow-up measures. Nevertheless, seven years later, the company once again found itself having to bow its head in apology.

Although some observers pointed to Musinsa as a model case of how to respond effectively to a public relations crisis, it is difficult to deny that the company was forced to endure another round of criticism and embarrassment when the old ad resurfaced.

A similar situation has occurred with convenience store chain GS25, operated by GS Retail.

In 2021, GS25 came under fire over a promotional poster for camping products that featured an image of a hand making a pinching gesture with the thumb and index finger. Some critics alleged that the image intentionally incorporated a "misandry code" — a symbol perceived as expressing contempt for or ridicule of men.

The controversy stemmed from the fact that, in certain online communities, the pinching-hand gesture had become associated with mocking men. As criticism intensified and even led to calls for a boycott of GS25, the designer responsible for the poster publicly explained that the gesture had not been intentional and was simply a mistake.

Similar controversies later emerged elsewhere. In 2023, a promotional video for the video game MapleStory by Nexon Korea drew criticism after viewers noticed a female character making a similar pinching gesture. In 2024, a promotional video produced by Renault Korea generated a comparable debate.

In each case, the appearance of a female hand forming the gesture sparked accusations of anti-male symbolism and led to broader public controversy.

These past incidents have all been revisited in the wake of the recent Starbucks controversy, and none escaped renewed public scrutiny.

Although not on the same scale as the Starbucks controversy, there have been other recent marketing campaigns that attracted public criticism.

An artificial intelligence-generated web drama-style advertisement recently posted on the official Instagram account of chicken franchise Pelicana sparked controversy because it featured a storyline involving a wife's infidelity. Captured from Instagram

One example was an AI-generated ad released on May 9 by chicken franchise Pelicana Chicken.

The ad depicts a married couple represented by fried chicken, who then have a baby represented by a piece of seasoned chicken. The husband becomes suspicious that his wife has been unfaithful because the child looks different from him. Online critics argued that the ad trivialized and made light of adultery.

Another controversy arose on May 11 involving the YouTube channel Giants TV, operated by the Lotte Giants baseball team.

Viewers accused the channel of mocking the late former President Roh Moo-hyun.

The criticism centered on a game highlight video posted the previous day. In the video, player Noh Jin-hyuk appeared wearing his jersey. Editors overlaid the caption "endless applause" ("muhan baksu" in Korean) across the portion of the jersey displaying "Jin-hyuk." As a result, the combination visually read as "Noh Mu-han applause" ("No Mu-han baksu"), which some viewers interpreted as a wordplay referencing Roh Moo-hyun's name and viewed it as a form of mockery.

There are further examples of how marketing and media content are facing heightened scrutiny, with seemingly minor creative choices increasingly becoming the focus of public controversy.

As old incidents continue to resurface one after another, the retail industry has been getting increasingly nervous.

Some companies are even worried that controversies that previously did not exist could suddenly emerge. In response, a number of firms have begun conducting internal reviews.

One food company recently launched a comprehensive audit of promotional content that had already been published on its official website and social media accounts, reviewing existing materials for potential risks.

Another company announced plans to provide training for employees in departments responsible for public-facing communications — including public relations and marketing. The focus will be on improving historical awareness, strengthening social sensitivity and awareness of public concerns.

Even so, industry insiders acknowledge significant limitations.

Their common complaint is that, no matter how carefully companies review advertising copy and images beforehand, it is extremely difficult to identify every potentially problematic reference or online slang expression.

Internet slang, memes and coded expressions are constantly being created and disappearing at a rapid pace, making comprehensive screening nearly impossible.

As a result, some industry figures have jokingly — but somewhat seriously — remarked that marketing departments may need an internal "detector" capable of identifying references associated with the far-right online community Ilbe before content is released.

"In the future, marketing will require not only people with creative ideas, but also people with strong political and social judgment — individuals capable of anticipating controversies and preventing various risks before they occur," an industry source said.

However, in the case of the "Starbucks May 18 Tank Day" controversy, even people within the industry believe that it is difficult to excuse.

An apology notice is displayed at a Starbucks store in Seoul, May 26. Yonhap

This is because it has been accused of trivializing the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising and the torture death of democracy activist Park Jong-chul — historical tragedies familiar to virtually every adult in Korea.

"Young employees who did not directly experience these historical events or who lack interest in them sometimes use such expressions (associated with mockery or hatred) without recognizing any problem," another industry official commented. "Supervisors should catch these issues, but because companies try to minimize interference in the name of 'respecting creativity,' such materials often get approved without proper review."

According to Starbucks' own account, this is essentially what happened.

In announcing the results of its internal investigation on May 26, Starbucks stated:

"Among the seven employees responsible for approving the marketing materials, some approved the email containing the design draft without even opening the attached file. In addition, the legal review process was skipped because of the need for speed in marketing."

As a result, the company faced criticism that the incident was the product of multiple failures occurring simultaneously: a lack of historical awareness and social sensitivity among staff, combined with a formalistic internal approval system that failed to function properly.

Experts say that establishing a systematic verification process is urgently needed to prevent similar incidents.

"Companies should establish specific review procedures during the marketing planning stage to examine what historical, political, and sociocultural impact a piece of content may have," Jeong Yeon-seung, a business professor at Dankook University said. "Introducing a filtering system that utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) technology would also be an efficient approach."

His point was that review processes should go beyond merely formal or superficial checks.

Some experts argue that the fundamental solution lies elsewhere. They emphasize that companies must first make efforts to improve employees' ethical standards and social awareness.

Seo Yong-gu, a professor at Sookmyung Women's University, underlined the need for organizations to go beyond simply improving practical procedures and bring about changes that prevent unethical or socially insensitive ideas from arising in the first place.

"Companies should foster an environment in which team members can challenge and check one another's ideas, and cultivate a conscientious corporate culture. Only then will stable growth be possible."

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.