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Ko Dong-hwan

Korea Times Business Reporter

Covering the food & beverage industry, beauty, fashion, retail markets, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and related people and entities worldwide

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Companies

P&G Korea promotes fresheners ahead of monsoon season

Major home hygiene products company P&G Korea is expecting stronger sales this summer as it promotes its lineup of odor-control products ahead of Korea’s monsoon season. Korea typically experiences a monthlong period of heavy rainfall from June to July. While the Korea Meteorological Administration has not yet officially declared the start of this year’s monsoon season, many expect it to arrive soon. The monsoon season is notorious for creating unpleasant odors in homes, particularly from damp laundry and bathrooms, as extended periods of rain reduce opportunities for clothes to dry naturally in the sun. According to the weather agency’s climate outlook for June through August, temperatures and precipitation levels are expected to be above average this year. Such conditions often keep people indoors for longer periods and increase household laundry loads. This summer may also see more people staying at home than in previous years, according to P&G Korea. The company cited a survey released in May by the Korea Press Foundation’s Media Research Center, which found that many respon

Jun 24, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
P&G Korea promotes fresheners ahead of monsoon season
Companies

PHOTO Starbucks closes early

A Starbucks store in Seoul displays a notice Monday announcing an early closure at 3 p.m. for employee training on historical and social awareness. The training follows a controversy over Starbucks Korea's "Tank Day" promotional campaign in May, which drew criticism for language that many viewed as evoking key moments linked to the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju. Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin later apologized for the incident. Yonhap

Jun 22, 2026By Ko Dong-hwanphoto
[PHOTO] Starbucks closes early
Companies

Korean beef sizzles in Dubai's fine dining scene

Korean fine dining restaurant Hanu in Dubai is now seeing rising demand for hanwoo, Korean beef livestock, over Japanese wagyu. The growing popularity of Korean beef is generating buzz not only for its distinctive taste but also for helping redefine hansik, or traditional Korean cuisine, in one of the Middle East’s major economies. For the past five years, Hanu chef Moon Kyung-soo has worked to secure halal certification for imported hanwoo from Korea, which is now the most popular meat selection at the establishment. “Hanwoo is not as fatty as wagyu. Hanwoo’s real flavor is in its juice and aroma. Our patrons at first doubted hanwoo but they love it now. A table once ordered 25 servings of hanwoo in a single meal,” Moon said in an interview with The Korea Times on Monday. “More than 90 percent of our guests prefer hanwoo over wagyu. As our consumption of wagyu has declined so sharply, our wagyu suppliers complained about the slowdown.” Hanu sources its hanwoo from a slaughterhouse in Hoengseong County, Gangwon Province, the only meat processor in Korea with halal certificatio

Jun 22, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Korean beef sizzles in Dubai's fine dining scene
Companies

Foreign repeat visits to Olive Young Sale surge 11-fold in 3 years

Foreign nationals' repeat visits to CJ Olive Young stores have surged 11-fold compared to three years ago, coinciding with the brand’s quarterly discount events, according to the beauty retailer Monday. Repeat visits by overseas shoppers to CJ Olive Young stores have been increasing annually in recent years, more than doubling each year since 2023. The company said that last year alone, 6,200 foreigners who traveled to Korea shopped at Olive Young three or more times during its discount events. Part of the reason for the repeat visits is that the Korea Customs Service refunds domestic taxes, including value-added tax, to foreign shoppers if they have a customs verification of export goods at airports or ports and leave the country within three months. The policy prompts foreign visitors to leave the country and, driven by interests in K-beauty, come back for more shopping. Olive Young Sale, held every March, June, September and December, involves more than 1,500 domestic beauty brands for discount, all of which represent Korea’s latest products and trends. CJ Olive Young said the ev

Jun 22, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Foreign repeat visits to Olive Young Sale surge 11-fold in 3 years
Companies

Korean trading cards rising assets for global collectors

Collectable trading cards are becoming increasingly profitable for Korean sellers as demand surges in the global market, with some cards selling for tens of thousands of dollars. According to global e-commerce platform eBay, Korean sellers of trading cards recorded double-digit year-on-year sales growth in the first quarter. Their overall sales on the platform ranked 10th by country in 2024 and spiked to sixth the following year. As of the first quarter, the figure rose to third. Korean sellers’ trading cards are largely categorized into intellectual property (IP) characters and sports. Their values are determined by their rarity and grade by third-party valuation. At the center of the Korean sellers’ market presence is Pokemon, a wildly popular franchise spanning games, anime, movies and trading cards introduced in 1996. Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, the animation’s trading cards have recently seen explosive demand, topping an IP chart with the 10 highest sales among Korean sellers on eBay. Behind the Korean sellers’ popularity is a rising global demand for trading

Jun 20, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Korean trading cards rising assets for global collectors
Companies

Indonesian candy Kopiko steals scenes in K-dramas

Indonesian candy brand Kopiko is stealing scenes in Korean TV and online streaming series. For years, viewers have watched characters in shows popping the sweet into their mouths, with the label prominently displayed. It is not a coincidence: Macrocom, a Seoul-based importer, has paid for the candy's product placement in more than a dozen shows since 2021. It started with "Vincenzo" on tvN, continuing with "Castaway Diva" on the same network in 2023, "Connection" on SBS in 2024, and most recently, "Brave New World," which is currently airing on SBS and Netflix. Macrocom and the brand’s manufacturer PT Mayora Indah Tbk, a major consumer goods company in Indonesia, began targeting the Korean dramas as a way to promote Kopiko. Their strategy for TV producers to show characters eating them to relieve stress and remark on its deliciousness. Over the past four years of TV exposure, Kopiko has built up its brand recognition here, leading to a boost in sales. GS25, a major convenience store franchise brand, sold more than 200,000 packages in a month after it went on shelves in 2024 for 1,000

Jun 19, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Indonesian candy Kopiko steals scenes in K-dramas
Companies

Public power generation firms' proposed merger sparks debate

A third-party analysis proposing that the government merge Korea's five state-run power generation companies to streamline structural inefficiency is prompting debates, with civic groups arguing Friday that the merger would still fail to incentivize generators to minimize costs and ultimately expand the use of renewable energy. A day earlier, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment revealed a study report conducted by Samil PwC on optimal scenarios that could improve the efficiency of five state-run power companies — Korea South-East Power, Korea Midland Power, Korea Western Power, Korea Southern Power and Korea East-West Power. The companies were originally a singular subsidiary under the country’s exclusive state-run power distributor Korea Electric Power Corp. They were all separated in 2001 as individual entities under the government’s power industry restructuring plan. The report said merging them back is “structurally most appropriate.” It noted that while the government is seeking to introduce renewable energy-based power facilities with an overall capacity of 1

Jun 19, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Public power generation firms' proposed merger sparks debate
Companies

Almonty confirms molybdenum reserves in Gangwon Province

Almonty Korea Tungsten Corp. (AKTC) is on a fast track to producing molybdenum — an important earth mineral — in Gangwon Province at a scale the company says could be sustained for more than 60 years. AKTC said on Thursday it has confirmed the volume and quality of a molybdenum reserve at the Sangdong mine in Yeongwol County that it now operates. The discovery, according to the company, was “similar to what we had seen through a past sampling process.” The latest update comes as AKTC has accomplished 37 percent of drilling inside the mine for the estimation of scale and quality of molybdenum ores. The company has so far drilled 26 locations and the bored tunnels now altogether extend to 12 kilometers in length. AKTC said it will begin producing the mineral as soon as the estimation process is complete. The company added that it plans to accelerate its molybdenum production schedule beyond earlier timelines. “The early results from this campaign are highly encouraging. With approximately 37 percent of the program complete, the grades we are encountering are consistent with our h

Jun 18, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Almonty confirms molybdenum reserves in Gangwon Province
Companies

'Wide Cup' fuels World Cup fever among Korean fans

Major liquor company Oriental Brewery (OB) is ramping up fan engagement for this year’s FIFA World Cup with the launch of “Wide Cup,” a new football-themed promotional campaign. The event follows Cass becoming the only Korean alcoholic beverage brand selected as an official sponsor of the tournament. Cass has served as an official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup since 2014, giving the brand a long-standing association with the world's biggest football event. Wide Cup participants compete to see how wide they can open their mouths while cheering for the Korean national football team during group-stage matches. The event takes place at designated restaurants and pubs in Seoul that serve Cass, where fans gather to watch the match together. The top six participants from each match are selected through artificial intelligence-based technology that automatically measures how wide their mouths are open based on photos taken at the venue. Winners receive cans of nonalcoholic Cass Zero equivalent to their measured mouth opening in millimeters. The first Wide Cup was held Friday during Korea's

Jun 17, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
'Wide Cup' fuels World Cup fever among Korean fans
Companies

Edward Lee, Faker named global ambassadors for K-food

Celebrity chef Edward Lee and the country's League of Legends superstar Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok have become Korea's official global ambassadors for K-foods, the government said Wednesday, as it seeks to expand exports and raise the profile of Korean cuisine overseas. The two are among seven newly appointed ambassadors tasked with promoting Korean food in key overseas markets, including the Americas, Europe and Southeast Asia. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said Wednesday that Lee, a Korean American fine dining guru, will be at the forefront of promoting Korean gastronomy across the United States and Canada. Showcasing his cooking using Korean food products and ingredients at local and international food shows in North America will be a basic manual for the chef hailing from Louisville, Kentucky. Faker, six-time world champion and 10-time winner of domestic leagues for the multiplayer online battle arena game, will be K-food's face across Chinese-speaking markets worldwide. He will promote Korean food through esports events in the regions. The appointments were dec

Jun 17, 2026By Ko Dong-hwan
Edward Lee, Faker named global ambassadors for K-food
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