Starbucks Domestic Black Rice 'Black Hepssal Gobong Latte' Popularity Soars

Starbucks Korea has spent the past 23 years listening to customers' needs, blending the world's best coffee with Korean sensibility, and leading a new coffee culture. It strives to provide not just a place to sell coffee but an experience of communication.

Starbucks has been a leader in non-discriminatory hiring regardless of age, gender, education, or disability. Starting with 40 partners at its first store opening in 1999, it now directly employs over 20,000 partners across approximately 1,700 stores nationwide.

It has also strengthened job support for vulnerable employment groups such as people with disabilities, middle-aged and older adults, and women with career interruptions. Actively participating in solving environmental and social issues, Starbucks has grown into a trusted company by reinforcing ESG management, which focuses on non-financial value alongside financial management.

To celebrate the Year of the Rabbit, Starbucks introduced the "Black Hep Rice Gobong Latte," made with domestically produced black rice. Since its launch, it has surpassed 500,000 cumulative sales and has attracted customers in their 20s and 30s who value conscious consumption by using Korean black rice and oat milk as a dairy alternative.

The Black Hep Rice Gobong Latte is a savory-flavored beverage combining espresso shots, black rice sauce, and oat milk. Topped with black rice pop toppings that burst in the mouth and pile up like a mound of rice, it can be enjoyed as a hearty and healthy meal replacement.