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Kwak Yeon-soo

Korea Times Digital Content Reporter

Kwak Yeon-soo is a digital editor at The Korea Times creating, editing and curating digital content for the newspaper’s website, mobile app and social media. She previously covered a diverse array of cultural, political and business topics.

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Companies

Pizza franchises struggle to stay afloat

By Kwak Yeon-sooMajor pizza franchises here have been grappling with worsening profitability as more and more Koreans look for cheaper alternatives, according to industry analysts Monday.The increasing wellbeing trend and soaring delivery costs, as a result of minimum wage hikes and higher raw materials prices, have discouraged many consumers from ordering pizza from large franchises, they said. According to audit reports released by the Financial Supervisory Service, MP Group, which owns Korea's pizza franchise Mr. Pizza, saw its sales plunge 17 percent to 119.8 billion won ($101 million) in 2018 from the previous year. The company has been losing money for the last four years, recording a 380 million won operating loss last year.A series of controversies involving former chairman Jung Woo-hyun, who was jailed for physically assaulting a company security guard, precipitated a downward spiral. The incident adversely impacted the brand and the number of stores dropped from 411 in 2015 to 277 in 2018. The company's management troubles mounted and franchises expressed frustration.MP Gro

May 13, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Pizza franchises struggle to stay afloat
Companies

POSCO E&C runs deadliest construction sites

POSCO E&C office in Songdo, Incheon / Korea Times fileBy Kwak Yeon-sooPOSCO Engineering & Construction (E&C) had the highest number of workplace deaths among local builders last year, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Monday.POSCO E&C CEO Lee Young-hoonAccording to the government data, POSCO E&C construction sites saw 10 deaths, followed by Hyundai Engineering & Construction with seven, and GS E&C and Bando E&C each having four. Daewoo E&C, Lotte E&C, Taeyoung E&C, Hanshin E&C, Doosan E&C, Daebang Construction each recorded three deaths last year. The land ministry said 485 construction workers died at their workplaces in 2018, down 21 from the previous year. The top cause of deaths in the construction sector was through slipping or tripping, accounting for nearly 60 percent.Among the public construction sites, Korea Electric Power Corporation had the highest death with 12 people, followed by Korea Land & Housing Corporation with 9 deaths. Korea Expressway Corporation recorded 8 deaths while Korea Rural Com

May 13, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
POSCO E&C runs deadliest construction sites
Companies

Beating heat with iced tea

Models display a wide selection of iced tea at a Homeplus outlet in Seoul, Monday. The discount store chain said it will offer a “buy one, get one free” promotional event on May 15. Courtesy of Homeplus

May 13, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Beating heat with iced tea
Companies

Homeplus fined for abusing power over suppliers

Homeplus headquarters in Gangseo-gu, southwestern Seoul / Korea Times fileBy Kwak Yeon-sooHomeplus was fined 45 million won ($38,290) for abusing its power in deals with smaller suppliers and ordered to take corrective action, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said, Sunday. According to the antitrust authority, Homeplus coerced its suppliers to move into stores with less retail space while reorganizing workplaces in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, from May to June in 2015. At that time, the retail giant did not provide proper compensation. The FTC also said it learned that Homeplus passed on the renovation cost worth 87 million won to smaller suppliers, which is an unfair trading practice.The FTC official explained that Homeplus' actions are a violation of Act on Fair Transactions in Large Franchise and Retail Business Article 17(8), which prohibits the tenant from altering the store's location, area, or facilities without justifiable reason during the term of the contract.“The change in store location should proceed after reaching an agreement through sufficient discussion. The

May 12, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Companies

Beauty industry embraces big data, AI to win over Gen Z

By Kwak Yeon-sooAn increasing number of skincare and cosmetics companies here are utilizing big data and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies for personalized marketing strategies aimed at attracting the post-millennial generation, known as Gen Z, according to industry officials.The beauty industry is focusing on tailored services and customization of products, such as a serum meant for a specific type of skin. Innisfree has teamed up with a research team led by  Kim Dae-shik, a professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering at KAIST, to analyze its consumer database and offer personalized services based on 1 million online product reviews compiled from January to December 2018. Kim and his research team developed a machine learning algorithm to categorize good or bad products based on customers' feedback and skin types. The team also constructed positive and negative lists of ingredients for each product.Innisfree said it will offer customized skincare advice, such as recommending products frequently used by customers or introducing new products to better reflect cu

May 12, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Companies

For one Hyosung

Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon, second from left, plays for Hyosung Heavy Industries team during a football match against Hyosung TNC at Anyang Plant in Gyeonggi Province, Saturday. About 3,400 employees and their family members joined the company's outdoor sports activities. Courtesy of Hyosung

May 12, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
For one Hyosung
Tech & Science

KITA holds meetup for exporters, startups

Bomapp CEO Ryu Jun-woo speaks at a meetup for local startups and mid-sized enterprises at the Trade Tower in Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of KITABy Kwak Yeon-sooThe Korea International Trade Association (KITA) hosted a meetup for local startups and mid-sized enterprises on Friday. The association said it would expand networking opportunities by holding one-on-one business meetings and launching a mentoring alliance ceremony next month.Omni System CEO Park Hye-rin, KG Group Chairman Kwak Jae-seon, Smilegate Entertainment Head Yang Dong-ki, HM International President Song Hyo-min and Startup Alliance Director Lee Ki-dae attended the Friday event.The leaders provided professional consultations to six startup CEOs about corporate management and overseas business opportunities. The startups, which participated to explore the cooperative opportunities, were insurance tech company Bomapp, food startup 6gram, bike rental service provider Lycle, VR/AR tech enterprise VisualCamp, digital security startup Ssenstone and genetic service provider Genoplan.“It was a great opportunity to get tips f

May 12, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
KITA holds meetup for exporters, startups
Economy

Korea's minimum wage fourth highest among OECD countries: KEF

By Kwak Yeon-sooKorea has one of the highest proportional minimum wages among OECD member nations, the Korea Employers Federation (KEF) said in a report, Sunday.The lobby group representing management has published a report containing data showing Korea's minimum wage was the fourth highest among 28 OECD member nations, when compared to average wages. Eight member nations that do not have a minimum wage system were excluded.According to the report, Korea's minimum wage increase rate in the past two years was 29.1 percent, about double the OECD's average increase rate of 14.2 percent in the same period.The government raised the minimum wage to 7,530 won ($6) per hour in 2018, up 16.4 percent from the previous year, and by another 10.9 percent to 8,350 won per hour in 2019.The minimum wages were estimated by using an international comparison methodology, along with statistics from the OECD and the Korea Minimum Wage Commission. As a result, minimum wage relative to median wage stood at 64.5 percent while minimum wage to average wage marked 50.3 percent, according to the KEF.This is hig

May 12, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Korea's minimum wage fourth highest among OECD countries: KEF
Tech & Science

'OLED to become optimal window to 5G device'

LG Display CEO and Vice Chairman Han Sang-beom delivers a keynote speech at the 2019 World Conference on Ultra HD Video Industry in Guangzhou, China, Thursday. Courtesy of LG DisplayBy Kwak Yeon-sooDisplays will play an important role in the fifth-generation (5G) network era in which a tremendous amount of data is processed much faster, and among others, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays will become the “optimal window” to 5G devices, according to LG Display CEO and Vice Chairman Han Sang-beom, Thursday.Han made the remarks in a keynote speech for the 2019 World Conference on Ultra HD Video Industry that took place in Guangzhou, China. Han became the first CEO of a Korean firm to be invited to the conference. “It is important that you enjoy high-quality videos anywhere and anytime,” Han said. “The OLED display, combined with various sensors and functions, can deliver superb picture quality and audio.” The conference is a major meeting place for Chinese industry experts, government officials, associations and the media to discuss the futu

May 9, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
'OLED to become optimal window to 5G device'
Companies

Hyundai Heavy hit by protest from Ulsan

Ulsan Mayor Song Chul-ho speaks at a press conference in Ulsan City Hall, Tuesday, urging Hyundai Heavy Industries Group to reconsider its plan to set up the headquarters of Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering in Seoul. / YonhapBy Kwak Yeon-sooHyundai Heavy Industries Group is facing protest from Ulsan City over its plan to establish the headquarters of Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, the newly merged company of Hyundai Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), in Seoul.Hyundai Heavy Industries Group plans to approve the plan at an extraordinary meeting of shareholders scheduled for May 31. Once the plan is approved, Hyundai Heavy Industries and DSME will become subsidiaries of Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering.Ulsan, home to the world's biggest shipbuilder, claimed the new company is a genuine head office of Hyundai Heavy Industries, thus the new firm should be headquartered in Ulsan, not Seoul.The nation's southeastern industrial city is protesting, apparently mindful of concerns that the plan would hurt the local

May 8, 2019By Kwak Yeon-soo
Hyundai Heavy hit by protest from Ulsan
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