Tim Hortons hit for 'overcharging' Korean consumers

A Tim Hortons store near Sinnonhyeon Station in southern Seoul is crowded with patrons, Dec. 14, 2023. Yonhap

BKR CEO Lee Dong-hyeong speaks during a press conference in front of Tim Hortons at Sinnonhyeon Station in southern Seoul, Dec. 12. Yonhap

David Kim recently dropped by a Tim Hortons store in southern Seoul to get a taste of its black coffee with cream and sugar that he used to enjoy back when he was studying in Toronto. As a student, money was always a concern, and Tim Hortons was his favorite cafe because of its affordable prices and great access thanks to the franchise's numerous chains throughout the city and the rest of Canada.

Stepping inside Korea's first Tim Hortons that opened last month, however, he scanned the menu and was disheartened to see that everything was way more expensive than he remembered. A medium-size cup of black coffee was 3,900 won ($3.97 Canadian). The same is sold in Canada for $1.83.

"I was hugely disappointed," said Kim who expected prices similar to Canada's. "If Tim Hortons in Canada sold their double-double and French Vanilla at the same prices as here in Seoul, I would have never gone there and neither would local patrons there."

Robert Lee, who used to visit Tim Hortons in Calgary when he was a language school student years ago, had the same grievance. He couldn't accept the fact that the brand's prices are almost on par with those of other high-end coffee brands here.

"For these prices, I don't need to come here," said Lee who has been searching for a job. "I don't get why they raised the prices to the levels of other coffee brands here. Is this some kind of localization?"

Canada's signature coffee and bakery franchise has caught flak here for its alleged overcharging, as local consumers have discovered that prices here are more expensive than in Canada. A medium-size cup of Americano, the most popular coffee drink here, is $2.79 in Canada but in Korea it is 4,000 won ($4.07).

Several local consumers have said that even considering the premium that is usually added to the prices of foreign brands, the price gap is unacceptably high. Some said that it is against the country's rising trend around low-priced coffee brands like Mega MGC Coffee, Compose Coffee and Paik's Coffee.

A disgruntled patron in an internet post likened Tim Hortons' high prices in Seoul to Paik's Coffee selling its 1,500 won Americano for more than double the price outside the country.

The controversy came after Tim Hortons' opening near Sinnonhyeon Station on Dec. 14 created a buzz and saw hundreds of consumers lining up ahead of its first opening. Two weeks later, the brand opened its second Korean store at nearby Seolleung Station, also in Gangnam District.

When contacted by The Korea Times, BKR, a local food franchise operator that manages Tim Hortons in Korea, declined to comment on the issue.

Lee Dong-hyeong, CEO of BKR, told reporters ahead of the store's opening that the company will open more than 150 Tim Hortons stores in the country within five years.