Government causing problems: Caffe Bene

According to the Korea Herald:

Caffe Bene, the nation’s largest coffee shop franchise, has started cutting jobs and executive salaries, blaming regulations against expansion of its bakery and restaurant chains.

Then a funny thing happened on the way to a seemingly bland story: There was actual talk about the Korean government playing a role in damaging Caffe Bene's business. Not just a throwaway line or a final comment at the end of the article, but actually tying the business's problems to the Korean government's policy.

Caffe Bene took over bakery chain Mainz Dom in December despite the National Commission for Corporate Partnership’s advice to reconsider the acquisition as the panel was discussing restricting bakery franchises. The state-funded commission last month designated bakeries and restaurants as “SME-only” businesses, barring franchises to keep from opening too many stores or within 500 meters from small bakeries. Large companies in the dining industry including Caffe Bene, which runs Black’smith, were also told not to open more restaurants.

A company wants to expand, but the government steps in to block it.

Ludwig von Mises wrote in the 1956 book Anti-Capitalist Mentality that one reason people despise capitalism is that it takes away the excuse for failure. When you have a king or some other person making decisions about your life, then you can blame that person. But when you are on your own, in a free economy? Then you can only blame yourself for your failures. When others succeed where you fail, then in a free economy, it is unpleasant to consider that you are to blame. So people are more comfortable with having a scapegoat rather than evaluating their own decisions.

It is possible that Caffe Bene's management made bad decisions--mainly, thinking that the South Korean government was actually interested in companies that attract customers being allowed to thrive. It is clear that the government screwed up their plans, putting up unnecessary barriers.

“Our plans to expand Mainz Dom and Black’smith restaurants this year were altered due to the commission’s decision,” said Caffe Bene spokesman Kim Dong-han.

“Mainz Dome, which has 20 stores, cannot open a new store because the panel limited the number of stores a bakery franchise can open per year to only 2 percent of existing stores. Black’smith, which we started in November 2011, can’t expand further, either.”

As Thomas Sowell has written: What is politically defined as economic “planning” is the forcible superseding of other people's plans by government officials.

Actress Han Ye Seul opened a Caffe Bene in Los Angeles--out of the reach of South Korea's busybody politicians.

CJL

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H ave you ever engaged in action not because you were sure it would change the world, but to satisfy your own heart? That, I emailed to an American friend, is why I have joined the effort to help North Koreans who are trying to escape from their homeland. I can’t change the direction of policy in North Korea or China but I can row the boat I am sitting in rather than lamenting that I can’t steer the yachts somewhere else. So I have tried to do what I can: Attending protests in front of the Chinese embassy in Seoul (and I plan to do so when I visit America in April); donating money to the Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights ( www.nkhumanrights.or.kr ); educating myself, writing articles and emailing friends; and, as a member of the board of trustees, I recently submitted a resolution to the Frederick Douglass Memorial and Historical Association (FDMHA) in Washington, D.C., to try to call attention to the plight of North Koreans. Our organization’s missi...

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On February 2nd from 2-3 a.m. (Korea time), I was the featured speaker at an "Author Spotlight" by the Harvard Division of Continuing Education (DCE) and the Harvard Extension Alumni Association (HEAA) . Watch, like, share, and comment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmRgP3q7rQg&list=PLn7xtnmarHFq6kVvq3PxOgC8nwjn8ioBO * * * I will be in the USA for two weeks in March, I will kick off the trip with a speech on the campus of the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HSGE) for its annual Alumni of Color Conference (AOCC). It will be a bit of a homecoming reunion, I was one of the speakers at the first HGSE AOCC in 2003. Stay tuned, this will be preparation for a larger event later this year. Thanks to everyone who has helped make FSI's work possible. ( Stripe ) ( PayPal ).

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Here's an article I co-wrote that will appear in the Sunday Outlook section of the Washington Post . We'll be updating this page over the coming days. So check back for updates. Memorandum 46 timeline , as compiled by us. Audio from our last show on XM 169 before we got fired. That audio is divided into segments, this one is one large MP3 . Who says Memorandum46 is true? Former rep. Cynthia McKinney presents Memo 46 to the United Nations and defends it in a speech . Joe Madison presents Memo 46 at the annual Congressional Black Caucus gathering. Former D.C. delegate Walter Fauntroy, on the Joe Madison show on XM 169 (audio available, upon request) and on Michael Fauntroy's site Boyd Graves (see Exhibit 10 of his lawsuit against the government) The Final Call, with Brzezinski's name misspelled . Len Horowitz Blackelectorate.com Millions for Reparations Various discussion forums or discussants, such as: Greekchat , Jahness , Who says Memorandum 46 is a forgery? Brzezi...

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