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Culture Foreign brands in Korea
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For brands, becoming Korean is key for success
SEOUL, Feb. 22 (Yonhap) -- On a typical morning, 17-year-old Do Sang-hoon gets ready for school. He eats a bowl of cereal for breakfast, puts on his North Face jacket, turns on his iPod Nano and heads out the door. On the weekend, he heads to McDonald's for lunch with his friends and Indian food for dinner with his family. Scenes like this are common in many Western countries, but this trend is becoming more common in South Korea. Students like Do who crave foreign products are Koreans who are maturing into consumers bucking the trend of buying local, and splurging on products and services from overseas.
Students think foreign products are cooler than Korean products. All my friends like Western food, Hollywood movies and products like iPhones," he said. "Everybody follows trends...If someone uses it, I want to use it. "Alternatively, companies like McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and other large well-known franchises have achieved success with their brands through identification of cultural components and adapting their products to suit the needs of their customers," he said.
Korea is fairly new to foreign brands. Its expanding market started to get noticed in the 1980's, but it wasn't until restrictions on overseas travel by South Korean citizens were lifted in 1989 that the country and the people opened up to the new world of overseas products. Yet, international brands often pick Korea as their test market
Sometimes, successful foreign brands change the local culture. "Just ten years ago, there was no place for women to really hang out after a meal," says Lee Su-jin, a 29-year-old kindergarten teacher. "Now, with coffee shops, or brunch restaurants, there are many options that were never here without the influence of the foreign companies and TV shows."
Now, local coffee shops like Caffe Bene and Angel-in-Us fill every street corner.
"Korea's white collar consumers demand quality, innovation and design appeal. In addition, I see the trend toward 'green' and well-being an aspect."
Amy Jackson, the president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Seoul, feels that companies who wish to succeed in the Korean market should form mutually beneficial relationships and trust with local partners."For U.S. companies interested in entering the market, we advise them to take time to learn about the local population, and be sure to take advantage of all the resources that are available to help them succeed in the Korean market," she said.
North Face accused of violation of fair trade
Seoul's Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) said it will file a complaint with the Fair Trade Commission against North Face Korea, accusing the outdoor brand of having engaged in unfair selling practices. It said the American company violated the fair trade rule by forcing department stores and other sales outlets to maintain the price tags set by the company, a scheme the YMCA said is aimed at keeping the price at high levels.The civic organization has said Korean consumers pay about 50 percent more on average for products of the foreign outdoor brand than in other countries. North Face Korea has refuted the allegations.The YMCA said that North Face, favored by middle and high school students here, has forced wholesale and retailers to sell products at prices set by the company, which is in violation of the fair trade rule.
“North Face has maintained the identical price tag of the same product at all outlets regardless of the region and store type,” YMCA said. “This shows that the company’s pricing guidelines are functioning behind the same price tag, which is part of its strategy to keep products priced highly.”
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2012/02/117_105046.html
WORD
splurge 돈을 마구 쓰다
component 구성요소
white collar 사무직 종사자
mutually 상호적으로
allegations 혐의
retail 소매상
QUESTION
1) Comparing your life with Sang-hoon’s, talk freely about foreign product and your life
2) Do you like or dislike foreign brand? Is there any specific reason?
3) Are there any problems that arised as Korea became the target for
foreign brand marketing?
이 글은「대학연합영어토론동아리」www.pioneerclub.com에서 제공하는 영어토론 정보입니다.
SEOUL, Feb. 22 (Yonhap) -- On a typical morning, 17-year-old Do Sang-hoon gets ready for school. He eats a bowl of cereal for breakfast, puts on his North Face jacket, turns on his iPod Nano and heads out the door. On the weekend, he heads to McDonald's for lunch with his friends and Indian food for dinner with his family. Scenes like this are common in many Western countries, but this trend is becoming more common in South Korea. Students like Do who crave foreign products are Koreans who are maturing into consumers bucking the trend of buying local, and splurging on products and services from overseas.
Students think foreign products are cooler than Korean products. All my friends like Western food, Hollywood movies and products like iPhones," he said. "Everybody follows trends...If someone uses it, I want to use it. "Alternatively, companies like McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and other large well-known franchises have achieved success with their brands through identification of cultural components and adapting their products to suit the needs of their customers," he said.
Korea is fairly new to foreign brands. Its expanding market started to get noticed in the 1980's, but it wasn't until restrictions on overseas travel by South Korean citizens were lifted in 1989 that the country and the people opened up to the new world of overseas products. Yet, international brands often pick Korea as their test market
Sometimes, successful foreign brands change the local culture. "Just ten years ago, there was no place for women to really hang out after a meal," says Lee Su-jin, a 29-year-old kindergarten teacher. "Now, with coffee shops, or brunch restaurants, there are many options that were never here without the influence of the foreign companies and TV shows."
Now, local coffee shops like Caffe Bene and Angel-in-Us fill every street corner.
"Korea's white collar consumers demand quality, innovation and design appeal. In addition, I see the trend toward 'green' and well-being an aspect."
Amy Jackson, the president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Seoul, feels that companies who wish to succeed in the Korean market should form mutually beneficial relationships and trust with local partners."For U.S. companies interested in entering the market, we advise them to take time to learn about the local population, and be sure to take advantage of all the resources that are available to help them succeed in the Korean market," she said.
North Face accused of violation of fair trade
Seoul's Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) said it will file a complaint with the Fair Trade Commission against North Face Korea, accusing the outdoor brand of having engaged in unfair selling practices. It said the American company violated the fair trade rule by forcing department stores and other sales outlets to maintain the price tags set by the company, a scheme the YMCA said is aimed at keeping the price at high levels.The civic organization has said Korean consumers pay about 50 percent more on average for products of the foreign outdoor brand than in other countries. North Face Korea has refuted the allegations.The YMCA said that North Face, favored by middle and high school students here, has forced wholesale and retailers to sell products at prices set by the company, which is in violation of the fair trade rule.
“North Face has maintained the identical price tag of the same product at all outlets regardless of the region and store type,” YMCA said. “This shows that the company’s pricing guidelines are functioning behind the same price tag, which is part of its strategy to keep products priced highly.”
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2012/02/117_105046.html
WORD
splurge 돈을 마구 쓰다
component 구성요소
white collar 사무직 종사자
mutually 상호적으로
allegations 혐의
retail 소매상
QUESTION
1) Comparing your life with Sang-hoon’s, talk freely about foreign product and your life
2) Do you like or dislike foreign brand? Is there any specific reason?
3) Are there any problems that arised as Korea became the target for
foreign brand marketing?
이 글은「대학연합영어토론동아리」www.pioneerclub.com에서 제공하는 영어토론 정보입니다.
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