[인포스탁데일리=김영택 기자] Cuckoo, famous for its rice cooker, terminated contracts with 11 dealership owners who exposed abusive language in 2020.
Criticism is emerging that it is not a retaliation by canceling a lot of contracts.
In the meantime, Cuckoo and the agency have been renewing the contract unless there is a special reason, but the contract was terminated due to the expiration of the contract period.
These dealership owners have been selling or repairing Cuckoo products while running their dealerships for many years.
However, in July 2020, the Distributor Owners Association was formed, protesting against the unfair practices of the Cuckoo headquarters, such as repair costs.
When a council of 58 members was formed, the team leader at Cuckoo Headquarters was known to have urged the council to leave through verbal abuse and threats.
Currently, there are only 20 members left on the council.
The two dealership owners filed a lawsuit for ‘preservation of position’ and won, and the judiciary recognized the unfair treatment of Cuckoo headquarters.
The Fair Trade Commission also made a decision on terms and conditions dispute adjustment, including an increase in internal service agency fees, but it is known that Cuckoo did not follow through.
Even Cuckoo’s headquarters is criticizing that it is tightening the leash so that it has no choice but to close itself while setting up a direct store near the agency that terminated the contract.
On the 24th of last month, the store owner’s council reported Cuckoo headquarters for violating the Fair Trade Act.
Meanwhile, Cuckoo has a domestic market share of over 70%. It is a situation in which the succession was completed by donating all of the shares owned by the founder, Chairman Jasin Koo, to his eldest son, CEO Bonhak Koo.
There is also controversy over expedient succession while not paying a penny of inheritance and gift tax in the process of Cuckoo’s gift.
Chairman Koo Ja-sin has been preparing for succession work since 2006 for the succession of the eldest son, and the stock value, which was 1.1 billion won, has now jumped more than 310 times to about 344 billion won.
Reporter Kim Young-taek [email protected]
© Infostock Daily Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited