|
Nam Jong-hyun,
CEO of Glami Co. |
By Kim Hyun-cheol
Staff Reporter
A lifelong effort of an inventor and entrepreneur was rewarded with the highest-class industrial award on this year's Invention Day.
Nam Jong-hyun, CEO of Glami Co., won the Gold Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit at Monday's celebration ceremony of the national day in Seoul. The anniversary was established after the same date in 1441, when King Sejong announced the invention of the world's first rain gauge.
The name Glami, a mid-sized enterprise, might not sound that familiar to most customers but it has a representing hit product in the local market ― its steady-selling hangover drink, Dawn 808.
Since it was first released in 1998, Dawn 808 has successfully secured one of the leading slots in the ever-growing market with its benefit of using natural ingredients. It has about a 20 percent market share, only trailing Condition, the first product in the business released in 1992 by CJ.
The herbal tea drink product currently has patents in 11 countries and also won awards at many international inventions, technology contests and related fair events, including three titles at the 1999 Invention & New Product Exposition in Pittsburgh.
The product was a result of Nam's undaunted ``inventing spirit.'' The number 808 in the product is the number of failed experiences he conducted before he succeeded in developing the product. Now the businessman is committed to the promotion of Glami's new product, Damina 909, another natural tea product for stamina.
Nam's invention not only covers hangovers and lack of stamina. The renowned inventor has domestic and international patents in various fields from cures for burns to a hair-restorer.
As an inventor, the executive has been sponsoring a local youth invention contest for seven years and also plans to establish an international invention award from next month.
``I feel happy because I believe what I create can make people happy," Nam said. ``It is true there is no loyal road in invention, but it's also true that anything we feel to be inconvenient, or is in need of changes for the better, can be material for invention."
hckim@koreatimes.co.kr
|
yistory@koreatimes.co.kr
