Starbucks Korea is cracking down on customers who turn its cafes into full-blown offices, banning the use of desktop computers, printers, power strips, and large partitions inside its stores.
The policy, announced on August 7, targets a small but persistent group known locally as “cagongjok” — a blend of the Korean words for “cafe” and “study tribe” — who work or study for hours at coffee shops.
While most use laptops, Starbucks says some have gone as far as hauling in large monitors, printers, and even cubicle-style dividers to carve out private workstations.
Photos of these setups have circulated widely online, showing printers perched on chairs, wires sprawled across tables, and dividers blocking seats from other customers.
Starbucks bans wild office setups in cafes
To prevent their stores from becoming makeshift offices, the chain has now posted signs nationwide asking customers to take their belongings when stepping away for long periods and to free up shared tables for others.
“At tables that can be used by multiple people, please yield seats so that other customers can also use them. Personal desktop computers, printers, multi-taps (power strips), and folding screens cannot be used in the store,” one notice reads. “When leaving your seat for an extended period, please take your belongings with you so others can use the space.”
Starbucks emphasized that laptops and smaller devices are still welcome, but said bulky office gear takes up too much space and hurts the shared cafe environment.
A 2019 study by the Korea Foodservice Industry Research Institute found a $3 coffee covers less than two hours of seat time before it becomes unprofitable, a figure that has dropped even further in 2024.
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