Facepalm: Many Starbucks customers can be spotted working or studying on their laptops or tablets while sipping a drink. In South Korea, however, the trend has gotten so out of hand that the company has put up signs nationwide asking customers not to turn cafés into home offices.
According to a recent report from The Korea Herald, Starbucks has banned the use of full-size desktop computers, printers, power strips, and privacy partitions in its South Korean coffee shops. Could you imagine popping in for a quick caffeine boost and seeing someone hammering out a report or even playing a game on a desktop computer?
The publication labeled this sort of clientele "cagongjok," which is a portmanteau of the Korean words "café" and "study tribe" and is most often used to describe people that work or study at coffee shops for extended periods.
The new signs also ask customers to make room for others at shared tables and to take their belongings with them if they plan to step away for an extended period. A representative for Starbucks Korea told The Korea Herald the new policy is designed to help keep stores comfortable for all guests and to reduce the potential for loss or theft.
Photos of workstations have been shared on Korean social media, and they're as ridiculous as they sound.
According to a 2019 estimate from the Korea Foodservice Industry Research Institute, a $3 cup of coffee covers just one hour and 42 minutes of "seat time" before that customer is no longer profitable (remember, they're consuming electricity to power their devices and may even be turning other potential customers away by taking up seat space).
The number of coffee shops in South Korea doubled between 2015 and 2024, and now heavily outnumbers the country's four largest convenience store chains.
It's worth reiterating that Starbucks isn't banning laptops or study sessions, they simply want customers to leave their home office where they belong – at home.
Image credit: Niels Kehl, The Korea Herald