2019-07-30 16:21

By Kim Rahn

Former BIG BANG member Seungri answers reporters' questions when entering the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency to be questioned over his alleged irregularities involving a nightclub in this March photo. / Korea Times file

Owners of outlets of a noodle restaurant chain formerly run by Seungri, a former member of boy band BIG BANG, are suing him as their sales have plummeted due to various scandals involving him and the nightclub, Burning Sun that he helped manage.

According to law firm Chunil that represents the owners, 26 owners of 15 outlets of Aori Ramen filed a compensation suit with the Seoul Central District Court, Tuesday, demanding a combined 1.5 billion won ($1.26 million) from Seungri, the franchiser Aori FNB and the current head of the company.

The restaurant franchisees began to operate the outlets across the country between June 2017 and November 2018. Most of them used to enjoy over 100 million won in monthly sales, backed largely by promotions by Seungri who talked about his restaurant business on multiple TV shows.

However, after the scandal broke last December, they claimed their sales between January and April nosedived to about half the earlier earnings, as many angry fans of Seungri and the public boycotted the restaurants.

"Aori Ramen has been promoted as Seungri Ramen and he himself promoted it directly and indirectly through TV shows and social networks," the owners said in their complaint. "According to a revised law on franchise businesses, the franchiser should compensate the franchisees' losses caused by owner risk."

"Owner risk" means losses caused by the inability of or irregularities committed by the owner of the business.

They said Seungri, who was the head of the company at the time of their contract signing, should be held accountable as well. "He is the person who caused the situation so he should take responsibility for it," they said.

Earlier some other outlet owners filed a similar compensation suit, but they held only Aori FNB accountable, not Seungri.

One of the owners told a local media outlet that they opened the restaurants despite the high franchise fees and royalties as they put their trust in the brand name of Seungri. "But he has never apologized to the outlet owners since the scandal broke," he was quoted as saying.

Seungri was embroiled in various scandals involving illegal drug use, rape and other criminal acts that allegedly took place at the nightclub where he was a public relations director.