By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter
Few people would leave a job at Samsung Electronics to become a celebrity stylist. Yet that's exactly what Kim Myung-hee, currently the CEO of her own public relations firm, did.
A graduate of Japan University, Kim was working as part of Samsung Electronics multimedia team, but she soon found herself tagging along one of her friends who worked as a stylist.
``I liked fashion a lot. I felt like I could do the job as well as other people. So I started assisting other stylists while still working at Samsung. In 1996, after two years with Samsung, I quit my job and started to become a full-time stylist,'' she told The Korea Times.
At that time, the fashion and entertainment industry had a lot of stylists but few actually had a real, distinctive sense of style. While some stylists would merely copy what was on foreign magazines, Kim said she would get inspiration from Japanese fashion and pop culture.
Her unique style eventually caught the eye of S.M. Entertainment head Lee Soo-man, who asked her to be the stylist for some of his biggest stars like BoA, Shinhwa and Fly to the Sky. Kim said she learned a lot working with Lee, who she considers as one of the smartest businessmen she has met.
Kim also worked with other K-pop stars like Sechs Kies, Koyote and Yang Dong-geun, and did styling for fashion magazines and commercials.
However, Kim wanted to do more than dress up celebrities. She naturally gravitated to public relations, working for Mandarina Duck and eventually starting her own company Syso Communications in 2004.
``I don't think of myself as a CEO even though I am. Creative director is how I'd like to call myself. In order to find out clients' objectives and to achieve the clients' ultimate goal, the 'creativity' is the inevitable factor,'' she said.
Kim, a no-nonsense and driven woman, enjoys her work in public relations, although it is challenging to deal with different clients. Syso is currently working with mostly foreign companies involved in finance, fashion, cosmetics, auto and wine industries, but Kim considers fashion PR as her company's strength.
``At Syso, we have a real passion for work. We work more than what we should, and clients acknowledge us for our work and loyalty. For the brand, we think we put in more effort than the client's own staff,'' she said.
Describing herself as a workaholic, Kim said she barely has time to think about what she has done with her life, but she is looking forward to the future.
``Over last 10 years, times I've spent in Samsung, styling industry, teaching at Suwon University and working for foreign company and until now, owning my own business, I think I enjoyed everything, and simultaneously did all my best for everything. … But I'd say I haven't shown all my capabilities yet. My head is still full of good ideas that I haven't actualized yet,'' she said.