 |
| Hyun Sung-jun, CEO of Likealocal, a startup providing mobile tourism information, talks during a recent interview with The Korea Times in Seoul. Korea Times photo by Jung Da-min |
Tourist activity business CEO shares how his company deals with COVID-19 crisis
By Jung Da-min
When feeling stressed out, Hyun Sung-jun, the CEO of Likealocal, a startup that offers travel information on Korea to foreign and local tourists, heads to the mountains.
"I like to go hiking when I have too many thoughts in my head. Making my body tired from the physical activity of climbing a mountain helps me get rid of them," Hyun said, during a recent interview with The Korea Times in Seoul.
He recently went to Mount Bukhan, the highest peak in Seoul, when his company was striving to find a breakthrough after the global tourism industry was brought to a halt by the COVID-19 pandemic.
There have been many crucial moments since he founded the company in 2016 at the age of 25, Hyun said, but this year's crisis is comparable to that caused by Beijing's economic retaliation against Seoul following Korea's 2016 decision to allow the U.S. to deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in the country.
In an attempt to overcome the THAAD crisis by developing tailored tour programs for Chinese independent travelers who visited Korea despite Beijing's restrictions, Likealocal, headquartered in Seoul, expanded its services by establishing a subsidiary in China's Tianjin in 2018 and a branch on Korea's southern resort island of Jeju in February this year.
Hyun said his company is now seeking to adapt to the changed environment of the tourism industry in the post-pandemic world.
"Small groups of travelers like couples, friends or family members will be seeking places they can travel to safely, refraining from visiting popular tourist sites where there could be too many people. My team is now researching various travel routes across the country that could meet such a need," Hyun said.
The Likealocal team also launched an e-commerce platform "Adapko," an abbreviation for "Adapt to Korea," through which it provides information on Korean products for foreigners staying here, and connecting foreign customers with local producers.
In fact, the future of the tour industry looks dim, Hyun admitted, but he said it will bring about new business forms and new experiences.
"With movement restrictions, the concept of travel itself will be changed from something big to something light, comfortable and linked to our daily lives. The concept of long travel is also likely to disappear," he said.
Hyun also said he does not see the idea of a "virtual" trip, providing virtual travel experiences with images or videos through online platforms, as a good alternative for a real trip, as he thinks the real meaning of travel lies with the physical contact with new places.
"There are lots of attractive places not just in the capital but in other cities in the country. My team's goal this year is to further develop regional tourism services through cooperation with regional governments and organizations. Our focus so far has been more on travelers from China but now we want to expand it to travelers from around the world," Hyun said.
Asked how far he thinks he has come with his goal of becoming a good CEO, Hyun said if he compared it to hiking, he has not even arrived at the start yet.
"When I went hiking on Mount Bukhan, I first walked for about half an hour thinking I was passing through the entrance of the hiking course but then I soon discovered I was just arriving at the entrance. When it comes to my course to become a good CEO, that I am aiming to be, I think I am not even at the stage in which I recognize where the entrance is," Hyun said. "But once I find the entrance, I believe, my company could grow ten- or one hundred-fold what it is now."
