Park Jae-hyuk is a seasoned journalist who has provided comprehensive coverage of South Korea's corporate dynamics, economic policies, industry challenges and the global positioning of Korean companies. Based on the articles he has written since joining The Korea Times in 2016, his investigative approach has helped readers understand corporate governance, economic trends and business strategies shaping South Korea’s economy.
FILA rewards teenagers' support
Hongseong Girl’s High School students in South Chungcheong Province raise FILA Classic Shoes in their classroom on June 7, after receiving them from FILA Korea as free gifts. The global athletic brand announced Thursday that it will offer the shoes to 18,000 nationwide middle and high school students free of charge. / Courtesy of FILA Korea
By Park Jae-hyuk
By Park Jae-hyuk
FILA Korea decided to offer its newly released FILA Classic Shoes free of charge to 18,000 nationwide middle and high school students who participated in an online contest, the global athletic brand announced Thursday.
The contest, which ended in late April, encouraged students to post photos and videos taken with their classmates and teachers on FILA’s online events page. The company initially planned to select 10 classes and give the students its Court Deluxe Shoes and Heritage T-shirts.
To express its gratitude to every participant, however, FILA changed the initial plans and decided to give FILA Classic Shoes to all of them instead.
Officials of the Seoul-based firm said that they were highly impressed with the students’ creative content. The officials also wanted to compensate for support from teenage consumers who led the brand’s popularity.
Last Wednesday, FILA officials began to visit participants in the event without any notice.
The sportswear brand has given the gifts to students of Hongseong Girl’s High School in South Chungcheong Province, Dongducheon High School in Gyeonggi Province, Jinju Girls’ High School in South Gyeongsang Province and Myungil Girls’ High School in Seoul so far.
Students cheered when they found out about the surprise visit and some even broke out in tears, the officials said.
The newly released FILA Classic Shoes have recently gained popularity with youths for its fancy design and affordable price, along with the previously released Court Deluxe Shoes and Disruptor 2 Sneakers.
Since its release last September, around 400,000 Court Deluxe Shoes have been sold as of this Wednesday. FILA expects to sell 100,000 more Court Deluxe Shoes this summer.
Disruptor 2 Sneakers and other products also sold out right after their releases. The fever has spread to FILA’s apparel products including Heritage T-shirts and items from the Pepsi Collaboration Collection.
Thanks to its popularity, analysts expect FILA Korea will return to profitability in the second quarter.
FILA’s nationwide outlets are enjoying rising sales as well. In particular, the total sales of its 11 mega stores last month rose 80 percent year-on-year, according to FILA.
FILA attributed the success to Vice President Yoon Keun-chang’s management.
The oldest son of Chairman Yoon Yoon-soo has focused on shoes, the most important category of sport brands. He has led the release of the best seller Court Deluxe Shoes, managing the company’s wholesale strategy, affordable price policy, events for consumers and collaborations with other brands.
In 2008, the heir also established a global shoes sourcing center in Fujian, China, to manufacture and supply qualified shoes at affordable prices.
“We really thank our teenage customers for their loyalty and support. They have led the brand’s popularity and actively participated in our nationwide offline and online events,” the vice president said. “FILA will continue its efforts to release nicely designed and qualified products at inexpensive prices for our young customers.”