The Philly couple suing the city's coffee giant, La Colombe
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A Philly couple is suing La Colombe, alleging the coffee giant is working with one of their rivals abroad and undermining their business.
Why it matters: The allegations of double-dealing come from a couple who say they were early investors in the Philly-based coffee chain.
Driving the news: Myung Kee "Nick" Hwang and his wife, Linda, say they reached an exclusive licensing deal with La Colombe in 2010 that paved the way for them to open a coffee shop in South Korea and sell the company's coffee to other businesses, per a federal lawsuit filed earlier this month.
- But the Hwangs say La Colombe is now doing business in Seoul with Ralph's Coffee, owned by fashion designer Ralph Lauren.
- The couple has asked a judge to stop La Colombe from continuing to provide coffee and trade secrets to Ralph's Coffee, saying their actions are causing "irreparable harm" to their business.
Zoom in: The Hwangs, entrepreneurs and landlords who moved to the Philly region more than three decades ago, began selling La Colombe at one of their small Philly shops not long after the coffee company was founded in 1994.
- They "fell in love" with the coffee, the couple's attorney, Firouzeh Nur-Vaccaro, tells Axios.
- So much so that when co-founders Todd Carmichael and Jean Philippe Iberti needed capital to expand, the Hwangs pumped in cash and became minority stakeholders in the business, according to the lawsuit.
The couple's stake was eventually bought out, but not before they struck the licensing deal, which contained a provision that kept La Colombe from working with the Hwangs' competitors, Nur-Vaccaro says.
Between the lines: The legal dispute began after the Hwangs tried to add one of La Colombe's canned lattes to their menu in South Korea.
- The Hwangs say they were told the latte wasn't part of their licensing deal.
- The couple learned from former La Colombe employees that the company was "heavily involved in establishing" Ralph's Coffee in Seoul — including creating one of the store's signature coffee blends, per the lawsuit.
What they're saying: La Colombe is "actively undercutting and sabotaging" the Hwangs, perhaps as part of a push to "take over in the lucrative Korean market," Nur-Vaccaro tells Axios.
The other side: Representatives for La Colombe and Chobani didn't respond to Axios' requests for comment.
Flashback: Chobani acquired La Colombe for $900 million in 2023. Last month, Carmichael wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post that "things are beginning to get very dark" for coffee roasters because of the Trump administration's tariffs on imports.
- Carmichael announced last year that he's developing a new venture around sodas packed with vitamins and antioxidants.