CEO Jeonghun Song of CUPBOP Reveals Experiences of Shooting and Theft
From Dancer to Food Truck Entrepreneur: The Difficult Road to Success in the United States
Jeonghun Song, CEO of the Cupbap brand 'CUPBOP,' who achieved an annual sales record of 60 billion won in the United States, has revealed that he was a victim of both a shooting and theft. Song, a former dancer turned entrepreneur, sparked a Cupbap craze in Utah in 2013 with just a single food truck.
He shared these experiences on the July 13 broadcast of the KBS2 variety show 'The Boss Has Donkey Ears.' Song began by showing the office in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he had worked for seven years. He described it as "the place where Cupbap began, where I worked every day from morning until dawn," and introduced it as "a place filled with my happiest moments and most difficult times."
He went on to say, "Because it was such a dangerous area, people around me were very worried," and added, "Someone once shot at the office window and ran away, and thefts happened frequently." He revealed the spot where he had been shot at, and also shared that an employee, along with his friends, once stole security cameras and 50 million won in cash from the store.
He also recounted a crisis in which he was nearly stripped of his CEO position and lost the company he had built over nine years, due to a betrayal by a former business partner.
Song explained, "He was someone I had known for 20 years. I started the business with my own idea and split the shares 33.3% each with people I knew. There were two brothers, one older and one younger. The younger brother left to start his own business, and as he left, he transferred his shares to someone else. Those people then joined forces and tried to fire me." They claimed that Song should be removed from his position as CEO, alleging that he had assaulted and harassed employees.
Song Junghoon, CEO of 'Cupbap,' is explaining the crisis when he almost lost his company. KBS Entertain YouTube capture
Faced with this terrible situation, Song considered giving up the Cupbap business, but said he found hope thanks to encouragement from his daughter and support from his employees. He appeared on the globally renowned business audition program 'Shark Tank,' secured investment from American billionaire Mark Cuban, and, with the active support of his employees?who submitted petitions on his behalf?was ultimately able to regain control of his company.
Song, a former dancer, sparked a Cupbap craze in Utah in 2013 with an old food truck. The restaurant franchise 'CUPBOP,' founded by Song, now operates 40 locations in the United States and about 100 stores in Indonesia and other countries.
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