BEIJING - ANGRY customers mobbed Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets in China this week, turning over tables at a Beijing restaurant, in anger over a coupon promotion gone awry, state media reported on Thursday.
The trouble flared on Tuesday as the US restaurant chain launched a promotion in which coupons downloaded from the Internet could be exchanged for food at KFC outlets, the Global Times newspaper said.
Customers became angry after staff refused to accept some coupons for the 'Super Tuesday' promotion, saying they were fake.
Angry coupon-holders at one branch in Beijing's central business district flipped over chairs and tables and had to be dispersed by police, the Global Times said. The report did not mention any injuries or damage.
Crowds also gathered in at least one Shanghai branch, the newspaper said, adding that complaints were reported in at least four other major cities.
'It is with great regret that the promotion activity caused trouble for some consumers. This was not the original intention of the activity we designed and for this we are deeply sorry,' said a KFC statement dated on Tuesday. The fast-food chain has more than 2,100 outlets in 450 cities around China.