Starbucks celebrates its 15 years in Korea by opening the first community store in the Daehakro neighborhood of Seoul.
The coffee chain will donate KRW300 (US30 cents) from every purchase at the store to Green Umbrella ChildFund Korea (GUCFK) to directly support lifelong skills development for youth through the Starbucks Comprehensive Youth Leadership Program.
The program builds on the collaboration with GUCFK to offer academic scholarships through to graduation, combined with a curriculum focused on business acumen, collaborative communications and social consciousness as part of its aim to prepare young people from disadvantaged backgrounds for educational and career opportunities in Korea’s economy.
Since 2006, Starbucks Korea and Green Umbrella ChildFund Korea have collaborated to help address social and community needs across the country with a strong focus on investing in young people.
Located in the education and arts district of Seoul, the community store will be a social hub for the local community celebrating opportunities to create a positive change through an interactive community board and a unique art wall, created by local university students.
Over time, the store will host workshops and seminars facilitated by business and community leaders to create dialogue and engagement on topics impacting the community.
The Seoul community store opening is Starbucks eighth community store globally and the second in Asia.
Starbucks Korea now has more than 697 stores across 62 cities and is the company’s fourth largest market outside the US.
