Gwangju Kakao Franchise Stores "Urgently Request Kakao Mobility to Establish Win-Win Measures"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] In Gwangju, Kakao Taxi franchise business operators have formed a council and urged Kakao Mobility to establish a win-win plan.

They also issued warnings against the involvement of parties such as the corporate taxi association, who do not operate franchise taxis, in franchise taxi business matters.

The Gwangju Metropolitan City Kakao T Blue Franchise Council (hereinafter referred to as the Franchise Council) released a statement on the 12th, saying, “We feel a serious sense of crisis due to the many problems arising from the recent Kakao franchise taxi controversy, and we demand that Kakao Mobility promptly prepare countermeasures.”

They added, “The franchise taxi controversy has caused damage such as the decline of the Kakao T Blue franchise taxi brand image and a drop in sales.”

Furthermore, they stated, “Only the Franchise Council holds representativeness as franchise taxis, and we will derive detailed and specific win-win plans for the development of franchise taxis going forward.”

The formation of such franchise councils in regions like Daegu and Gwangju following the Seoul metropolitan area reflects the awareness that the resolution of various controversies surrounding Kakao franchise taxis should be led by the franchisees themselves.

The Franchise Council was formed with the participation of 35 corporate taxis operating the Kakao T Blue franchise business in the Gwangju area. The Franchise Council signed a ‘Franchise Taxi Win-Win Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)’ involving three parties: the franchise headquarters KM Solution, the platform partner Kakao Mobility, and the Franchise Council itself.

The Franchise Council stated, “Only the Franchise Council holds representativeness as Gwangju Metropolitan City Kakao T Blue franchise taxis,” and added, “The Franchise Council will also stand against various measures taken by the Gwangju Metropolitan City Taxi Business Association, which has restricted the activities of franchise taxi operators.”

According to the Franchise Council, the Gwangju Taxi Business Association opposes the entry of franchise taxis into Gwangju Metropolitan City and has expelled franchisees from the taxi association, leading to ongoing legal disputes with the franchisees.

The Franchise Council expressed concern, saying, “Through Kakao T Blue, citizens have been able to use convenient and safe taxis, and taxi workers’ treatment has improved to provide friendly service without ride refusals, which we have taken pride in. However, recently, forces not operating Kakao franchise taxis have raised various controversies about Kakao franchise taxis, causing our efforts to shrink.”

Additionally, the Franchise Council emphasized that based on Kakao’s win-win plan, they will incorporate various opinions from Kakao T Blue franchisees and will take a leading role in communication and preparing alternatives with the franchise headquarters.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.