Currently, South Korea has one of the highest in death tolls due to the pandemic coronavirus. As a result, many businesses and entrepreneurs have a hard time maintaining the market due to the slow economy.
On Monday, March 16, K-drama actor Hong Suk Chun took to his Instagram account to share with his followers his struggle in coping with the loss of revenue of his restaurant due to the pandemic. He mentioned that he operated the restaurant for 12 years and managing it was all he did. He continued that for almost two weeks until the restaurant closed due to the outbreak that hit the country. The rent took a toll on his bills and he is worried about it. He then considers to have the restaurant open for any exhibitor and all they need to do is to contact him. He thought it would be a good idea to help one another during these trying times.
If there are small businesses who want to display, or anybody who wants to use the place for video marketing, Hong Suk Chun said his restaurant is available. This way, he will be able to pay the rent. The actor expressed his need for funds while the people are not yet keen on dining outside.
On Instagram, the actor's original letter reads:
"I'll pay the rent. Please contact me if you have a pop-up store in the main area of Itaewon in Seoul and have items you want to introduce to customers. You can contact me via direct message.
"When the economy is poor like this, the answer is to gather ideas and passion to help each other. Let's have a new start. I will not sit still and be destroyed by COVID-19. Let's try to gain strength.
"Good luck to the city of Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province. To those who are self-employed, please gain strength. Small businesses, I hope all of you will gain strength. Everyone working to stop the outbreak, please hang in there. Let's keep our chin up, South Korea."
Hong Suk Chun is a famous restaurateur and a TV personality. He is one of the few actors who discussed and exposed his identity as gay. He came out in 2000, and it hit the industry by storm at the time because of the sensitive culture of South Korea. He currently owns many restaurants and buildings in Itaewon and other cities.
Last year, he also shared how the economy rose up in rentals and labor costs. He also opted to shut down a few of the restaurants he manages due to the pandemic.
