Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.
Seven Luck to boost ties with clinics
By Lee Hyo-sik
Grand Korea Leisure (GKL), the operator of Seven Luck Casino, is seeking to establish stronger business ties with offices of plastic surgeons and other private clinics frequently visited by Chinese and other Asian tourists.
The state-run company is looking to expand its customer base with those who come to Korea for cosmetic surgery and other beauty-related operations, mostly Chinese and Japanese women.
In recent months, GKL CEO Kwon Oh-nam has been meeting with a number of cosmetic surgeons and dermatologists operating in Gangnam district, southern Seoul, in a bid to attract more customers among foreign patients.
The foreigner-only gambling facility has been stocking these clinics with brochures about Seven Luck Casino, written in Japanese and Chinese.
“We have been discussing a joint business model with private clinics that attract many foreign patients. We think it is a win-win strategy for both parties if foreigners receive beauty-related medical care during the day and have fun in our casino at night,” CEO Kwon said.
He said Las Vegas and Macau have successfully integrated shopping, medical care and gambling into one package. “If we are able to follow in their footsteps, this business will boost the competitiveness of our service industry and create a number of jobs.”
GKL currently operates a casino at the Millennium Hilton Seoul hotel at the foot of Mt. Nam in central Seoul, another in southern Seoul and a third in Busan.