
In South Korea, even your cup of Starbucks could be too political
created: May 22, 2025, 9:42 p.m. | updated: May 26, 2025, 6:13 a.m.
In South Korea, even your cup of Starbucks could be too politicalStarbucks has temporarily disabled the use of six particular names on its appWalk into any Starbucks in South Korea right now, and there are some names you definitely won't be hearing.
Six to be exact - and they happen to be the names of the candidates running in the upcoming presidential race.
That's because Starbucks has temporarily blocked customers who are ordering drinks from using these names, which would be called out by baristas.
Now, as South Korea gears up to pick its new president following Yoon's impeachment, even the most mundane things can become politicised - a lesson Starbucks has learnt the hard way.
"Our goal is to make sure every customer has a great experience in our coffeehouses," Starbucks said in a statement about its new move to ban the six presidential candidates' names.
2 weeks, 3 days ago: BBC News