Latest news with #CallMyName
Washington Post
26-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Starbucks' nickname service in South Korea causes political headaches
SEOUL — Starbucks stores in South Korea have banned customers from using certain names as their own when they order their coffees — specifically, the six names that will be on the presidential election ballot next week. Starbucks Korea runs a 'Call My Name' service, which allows customers to select a nickname on the app for baristas to shout out when their sea-salt caramel cold brew or sausage pretzel is ready. The option had become a popular outlet for customers to express themselves through puns, jokes and K-pop fandom.
South China Morning Post
14-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
South Korea's Starbucks ban use of presidential candidates' names in orders
Starbucks in South Korea has banned customers from using the names of the country's presidential candidates – or the disgraced former president – for their orders, the coffee giant told AFP on Wednesday. Advertisement South Korea is holding snap presidential elections on June 3, to decide who will replace impeached former president Yoon Suk-yeol , ousted last month for his disastrous attempt to impose martial law in December. In South Korea, Starbucks stores run a 'Call My Name' service, which allows customers to select a nickname – which they input via the Starbucks app – that baristas use to announce orders when complete. Customers will not be able to use the names of all seven presidential candidates, including front runner Lee Jae-myung, and main conservative rival Kim Moon-soo, until after the vote, the company said. Starbucks is also banning customers from using the name of Yoon in its 'Call My Name' order service. Photo: Shutterstock Starbucks said it had taken the action, which was announced this week as official campaigning started, based on past experience of customers misusing the 'Call My Name' feature during previous elections. Advertisement The feature is a 'unique Starbucks service designed to build a sense of connection between store staff and customers', the company said in a statement.
Korea Herald
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Starbucks bans using presidential candidates' names as customer nicknames
Starbucks Korea has included the names of seven official presidential candidates as unusable for customer nicknames, in a bid to avoid politically-charged controversy. The local branch of the international coffeehouse chain said Tuesday that the politicians' names, along with recently-impeached ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol, have been banned from its Call My Name service, until the conclusion of the upcoming June 3 presidential election. Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea, Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Korea, Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party, Kwon Young-guk of the Korean Democratic Labor Party, Koo Joo-wa of the Liberty Unification Party, and independent candidates Hwang Kyo-ahn and Song Jin-ho cannot be registered in the Starbucks application for the service. Candidates' official campaign slogans also cannot be used. According to the company, this was a measure to minimize controversy and avoid political bias. Its official criteria for unusable nicknames include expressions that are against social norms, slanderous expressions, nicknames that can potentially cause discomfort among the public. The election to pick the president was initially slated to take place in 2027, but Yoon's much-disputed martial law imposition in December resulted him being expelled from presidency. He is currently under criminal trial for insurrection.
