"I sincerely appeal to Deckers headquarters. This matter is a personal matter involving Cho Seong-hwan alone. I earnestly ask that Deckers exercise fair and wise judgment to protect our employees."
Cho Seong-hwan, the former CEO of Joiworks, spoke through tears Monday at a press conference at Coreana Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, where he addressed the "HOKA gapjil assault" allegations. Cho had been at the center of controversy since being implicated in an assault incident last December, after which Deckers notified Joiworks that it was terminating the domestic distribution contract for HOKA.
The press conference opened with an apology. "Regardless of the circumstances, I bow my head in apology to the public and consumers for the concern caused by my personal lapse," Cho said, bowing deeply. He added that he would apologize for what he had done wrong, but would also speak up about what he believed was untrue. Over the course of an hour, he laid out what he described as inaccuracies in existing media coverage of the assault incident.
Cho first gave his account of the events. He said the meeting with the alleged victims had been arranged through an acquaintance so that he could receive an apology for remarks they had made disparaging his family — but that no such apology was offered when they met, and that the situation instead unfolded in a way that provoked the assault. Regarding the venue — an abandoned church — he said the alleged victim had used the space daily as a parking lot for two years.
Cho then emphasized that the assault victims were not subcontractors but competitors. He said the individuals involved were not employees of a subcontracting firm but a former Joiworks employee surnamed Lim and the head of an interior supplier surnamed Cheon, whom Lim had managed while at the company. Cho's side alleged that after leaving Joiworks, Lim co-founded a competing firm called Caveworks.
Cho also stressed that no business relationship existed between the two sides at the time of the incident. Lee Don-ho, the lead attorney at law firm Nova handling Cho's defense, said the business relationship between Joiworks and Caveworks had already ended 10 months before the incident, meaning no contractor-client hierarchy existed between them. Cho's side said it had filed for mediation with the Korea Press Arbitration Commission on that basis, and that a mediation agreement was reached requiring outlets to replace the term "subcontractor" with "competitor" in their coverage.
Cho further alleged that the assault incident was part of a deliberate effort by a rival company to seize Joiworks' exclusive domestic distribution rights for HOKA. "The essence of this case is an intentional media campaign orchestrated by a small number of internal collaborators and outside forces seeking to take away the exclusive domestic license that Joiworks holds," he said. "The full context of the assault coverage was cut out and maliciously edited and distorted."
He also alleged that Caveworks had operated as a competing business using Joiworks' client contacts and sales information, with the involvement of current and former Joiworks employees. He released materials he said showed that Caveworks used accounts registered under other names to maintain business dealings and communicated with Joiworks insiders through a separate group chat.
Also present at the press conference was Son Na Ja-yong, CEO of running brand Pullar, who said he had been a business partner of the assault victims. Cho claimed Son Na's tip-off brought the case to a new stage. Son Na said Lim and Cheon had been making disparaging remarks about Cho before the assault and had repeatedly said beforehand that they just needed to "take a few hits and get it over with."
Allegations were also raised that a major fashion conglomerate was involved behind the scenes. Cho's side claimed the conglomerate had worked with the rival company in an attempt to secure the exclusive domestic distribution rights for HOKA. An audio recording was released purportedly showing that the chairman of the brand in question is a nephew of the journalist who first reported the assault. However, Cho's side did not name the brand at the press conference.
Cho said he would pursue legal action against media outlets and seek to establish the truth through investigation by the relevant authorities. He also called on Deckers to make a fair decision on maintaining Joiworks' domestic distribution rights. "I will fulfill my legal and moral responsibilities," he said. "I again apologize to our employees, partners and customers who have been hurt by false reporting."
siuu@heraldcorp.com
