"What's the Owner's Fault?"... Concerns Over Victims in 'Kim Ga Ne' Chairman's Attempted Sexual Assault of Female Employee

Another Owner Risk Hits Franchise... Boycott Concerns
Kim Ga Ne Founded in 1992, Over 500 Franchise Stores
Similar Case: Hosigi Dumari Chicken Sales Plummet
Franchise Association in Dilemma as Former Chairman Faces Investigation

Kim Yong-man, chairman of the gimbap franchise 'Kim Ga Ne,' is under investigation for attempting to sexually assault an employee, raising concerns about potential damage to franchise owners. Previously, in 2017, when the chairman of Hosigi Dumari Chicken was involved in an employee sexual harassment incident, a boycott movement spread, causing a sharp decline in franchise sales.

According to the police on the 15th, the Seoul Seongbuk Police Station received a complaint against Chairman Kim in July and is investigating him on charges including quasi-rape causing injury and sexual harassment by abuse of authority at work (violation of the Sexual Violence Punishment Act). Quasi-rape applies when the victim is in a state of mental incapacity or unable to resist and is sexually assaulted or harassed.

Kim Yong-man, Chairman of Kim Ga-ne

According to the complaint, Chairman Kim is accused of attempting to sexually assault female employee A last September after she lost consciousness from drinking at a company dinner, moving her to a nearby motel. It was investigated that Kim attempted rape and committed acts of quasi-rape and harassment against A, who was unable to resist.

Kim Ga Ne has remained silent in response to official media inquiries.

Kim Ga Ne is an instant gimbap franchise that started in 1992 in Daehangno. It currently has over 500 franchise stores domestically. As of last year, its sales recorded 39.3 billion KRW.

Chairman Kim took office in 2008. He stepped down as CEO in March this year. Some interpret this as a preemptive move to mitigate negative impacts on the franchise business following the public revelation of Kim’s attempted sexual assault charges. Currently, Kim Ga Ne’s CEO is Kim Jung-hyun, Kim’s son. However, the chairman is still listed as CEO on the website and other materials.

Emphasizing management principles of trust, honesty, and love, Kim Ga Ne is inevitably facing significant damage to both its image and sales due to this incident. On the Naver cafe 'Apeunikka Sajangida' (Because It Hurts, I’m a Boss), a community of self-employed business owners, voices expressing concern over franchise owners’ damages due to the owner’s misconduct are growing, with comments like "What crime did Kim Ga Ne franchisees commit?" Already, netizens are saying, "I won’t eat Kim Ga Ne from today."

Choi Hosik, former chairman of Hosigi Dumari Chicken.

Owner misconduct in franchise businesses directly hits sales. The 2017 scandal involving Hosigi Dumari Chicken’s Chairman Choi Ho-sik’s employee sexual harassment is a representative case. After the harassment was reported, Hosigi Dumari Chicken’s franchise sales dropped by up to 40% over three months. The brand image and business performance have yet to recover.

Meanwhile, Kim Yong-man is also the 4th chairman of the Franchise Association. He was appointed chairman in 2008 and served for four years until 2012. The Franchise Association, which vowed to take strong sanctions against member companies causing controversies, is now in a difficult position. In the case of Hosigi Dumari Chicken, the chairman was expelled from the association after the sexual harassment charges were confirmed. Park Ho-jin, Secretary General of the Franchise Association, said, "We are still verifying the facts within the association," adding, "Since this is an issue involving a former chairman, not just a member company, we plan to discuss internally and decide on expulsion and other measures."