Most Popular
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Ex-presidential official’s leaked phone call rattles conservative bloc
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Man escapes DUI charges by downing bottle of soju while pulled over
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Pay debate plagues foreign nanny pilot
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K-pop star lip-syncing controversy flares up again
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35% of S. Koreans view unification 'unnecessary'
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Slew of top K-pop stars ready to return from military
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S. Korea, US clinch 2026-30 defense cost-sharing deal in pre-election push
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[Reporter’s Notebook] Was Netflix film opening BIFF really a bad thing?
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N. Korean leader's sister derides Seoul's Hyunmoo-5 missile as 'useless'
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Controversial cult leader’s sentence reduced to 17 years
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[Herald Interview] Green growth meets creative economy
The Global Green Growth Institute is committed to crafting low-carbon development strategies for emerging countries by harnessing innovation and fostering public-private cooperation in line with Seoul’s drive for a creative economy, its new chief said. Yvo de Boer, former executive secretary of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, also expressed his resolve to remake the Seoul-based international organization that has taken flak for its lax budget and personnel management in recent y
Foreign AffairsApril 21, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Indie rapper dreams big
Korean-American rapper Snacky Chan, 33, has always been an independent artist. From his start in the Boston underground hip-hop scene in the late ’90s to his move to Korea in 2008 and up to today, he said he’s never been out to get signed. Instead, he relies solely on himself. “When I first started ― first debuted ― the whole system kind of changed. People were doing stuff independent and building their own fan base, getting on the radio without depending on your label’s backing,” he said in a r
PerformanceApril 21, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Tenor talks about life’s many turns
Kang Yosep seems to be a hot commodity in Europe’s opera scene. Last December, he sang the leading role in Puccini’s tragic opera “La Boheme” for 17 days in three different productions staged by top opera houses in Berlin, Mannheim and Vienna. His schedule for this year and the next looks much the same. He is to perform in the German cities of Munich, Leipzig and Dresden, and in Warsaw and Vienna in the next few months. “I would love to spend some time with my family in Seoul, but my schedule is
CultureApril 16, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Designer shoe brands diversify sales channels
To most modern women, shoes do more than merely cover one’s foot for protection. “Shoes have become an important fashion item, in particular, for women who want to express themselves,” said Diana Kang, chief executive of GRI Korea, in an interview with The Korea Herald. “Riding on the trend, a growing number of Korean women are seen with growing shoe collections that are meant to match their daily outfits,” Kang said. GRI is a Hong Kong-based international apparel and fashion accessories retail
BusinessApril 15, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Putting Korean culture in global limelight
This summer, a series of Korean concerts, plays and performances will be held in London, competing for the limelight at the city’s major arts festival ― the City of London Festival. Five or six other Korean performance groups will take the much-coveted stage at the famous Edinburgh Festival next year, continuing what Angella Kwon hopes to be “the Korean culture bash” at high-profile international arts festivals. “Hallyu, or the popularity of Korean culture overseas, is still a very tiny, tiny mo
CultureApril 14, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Composer with crossover appeal sees future in gugak
The music of composer Ryu Hyeong-sun has an appeal that crosses strikingly different genres and attracts a diverse range of fans. To young or expecting moms, he is best known for a series of pregnancy music, lullabies and children’s songs. Christians know him as a gospel musician. Among fans of gugak or traditional Korean classical music, he is regarded as one of the country’s most promising gugak composers. Characterizing Ryu or his music by genre makes little difference to him, though. Music m
PerformanceApril 13, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Tiny T’way reaps rewards of efficiency
T’way Air may be the nation’s smallest budget carrier with just seven short- and midrange aircraft, but it is quickly building a reputation as an innovative player in a market which is reaching a fever pitch of competition. The carrier, for instance, moved faster than other low-cost carriers to become the first to launch a route between Daegu and Jejudo Island in March.The same month, the carrier created a sensation by introducing the cheapest-ever early bird promotion fares for domestic and int
BusinessApril 10, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Heritage kept alive in generations
The Italian luxury design house Salvatore Ferragamo has been slow to bring dramatic changes to its designs. Signature designs such as the ribbon bow and metal buckle have been repeated or revived with handbags, shoes, accessories and ready-to-wear collections. “Some of the signature pieces are the same design although new colors and materials have been added. The styles have always been the same because they’ve become icons,” said James Ferragamo, who oversees the women’s leather shoes and bags
Arts & DesignApril 7, 2014
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[Herald Interview] ‘Jam Boy’ talks life beyond money-making
The success story of “Jam Boy” Fraser Doherty, founder of SuperJam, has almost become legend. At the age of 10 he was a door-to-door sausage salesman. By the time he turned 14, he had become a jam maker after learning his grandmother’s secret recipe that replaced sugar with highly reduced fruit juice. In 2013, more than 1 million jars of SuperJam were sold in 20 countries grossing 3.4 billion won ($3.3 million) in sales. In Korea, more than 30,000 jars of SuperJam have been sold here since its K
IndustryApril 6, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Ghosn puts RSM at frontline of global strategy
Carlos Ghosn, chairman and chief executive of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, said Wednesday at a press conference in Seoul that the group will actively support Renault Samsung Motor’s new vision for 2016.Ghosn said he believes RSM will head Renault Group’s current global strategy, “Renault ― Drive the Change,” and play a more vital role in the group’s future.As reflected in the chairman’s words, RSM displayed considerable commitment over the past two years with an intensive revival plan that event
MobilityApril 2, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Procurement agency pledges full support for small businesses
Smaller companies are often at a disadvantage when it comes to competing for government contracts, partly due to heavy red tape. “The main goal of all of our business innovations is so that everyone who is involved may be able to more easily and quickly join the system,” Min Hyung-jong, administrator of the Public Procurement Service, explained in a recent interview with The Korea Herald.Min is one of the few chiefs of the agency who has been promoted from within. In addition to having more than
IndustryApril 1, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Designer Munsoo Kwon adds whimsy to menswear
Munsoo Kwon attracted more viewers than any other rookie designer for his runway show at this year’s Seoul Fashion Week. His show was also frequently mentioned by foreign buyers and press as a favorite during the event. Since his debut with his 2013 fall and winter collection last year, he has become one of the most anticipated young designers in Seoul. His collection, featuring modern silhouettes and fine tailoring with a unique sense of humor, was widely praised by foreign buyers and press. Fo
Arts & DesignApril 1, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Matchmaking website launched to help married people cheat
HONG KONG ― In Korea, where adultery could be prosecuted, an online website arranging extramarital affairs started operating on March 18 to gratify the urge of “some” married people to find happiness in the arms of people other than their spouses. Noel Biderman, founder of online dating site Ashelymadison.com ― and a rather erratic sex liberalist ― believes that his website, notorious for matchmaking married people, could change Korean society, while, of course, bringing him profit. “I have look
IndustryMarch 31, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Changing old habits in equity investment
John Lee left Korea more than three decades ago to study accounting in the U.S. He had a successful career as a fund manager on Wall Street ― he was responsible for some $1.8 billion worth of assets at the time ― and also headed a team of experts focusing on investment in Korea.Having enjoyed such success, Lee, now 56, is back in Korea for a new mission: to create an advanced investment culture in his home country. “I wanted to come back to use my knowledge and experience to help the country’s f
March 31, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Lee Michelle talks empowerment and breaking down stereotypes
Lee Michelle was first introduced to the public eye after auditioning for the first season of popular reality audition program K-pop Star in 2011, and has since further redefined racial stereotypes in Korea. Born to a Korean mother and African American father in the artistic rural town of Paju just north of Seoul, Lee grew up in Korea with her mother and older sister after her parents split. Her father returned to the States before she was born and to this day, Lee has never met him. Lee has alw
March 31, 2014
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[Herald Interview] Technology innovation leads future of Korean agriculture
Gone are the days when urban farming was an arcadian ideal, a hobby for city slickers or a pursuit of self-subsistence communes. It is high time to harness its industrial potential to cope with a growing threat to food security and increasingly fierce competition in agriculture, said Kim Jae-soo, president and CEO of Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp.“Agriculture doesn’t take place in farmlands anymore. Vertical farming converged with various state-of-the-art technologies will be a new pa
Social AffairsMarch 28, 2014
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[Herald Interview] The man behind musical ‘Aida’
Theater director and artist Keith Batten knows what it means to work overseas, especially when it comes to staging some of the most popular musicals in the world. He has directed over 60 productions, including Elton John and Tim Rice’s musical “Aida,” and the Broadway production of “Spiderman,” in 12 countries around the world. His last visit to Seoul took place back in 2005, when he was in charge of directing the local production of “Aida.” The musical, which tells the story of Aida, Nubia’s pr
PerformanceNov. 14, 2012
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[Herald Interview] Chris Bangle, front-runner in innovative design
Bangle to share design vision at second Herald Design Forum Sept. 19-21The following is the first in a series of email interviews with leading designers participating at the Herald Design Forum on Sept. 19-21. ― Ed.As companies try to create competitive advantage with innovative design, new design concepts are fast emerging, according to Chris Bangle, head of the eponymous design brand Chris Bangle Associates, in a recent e-mail interview with The Korea Herald. Just as Bangle said in the intervi
Arts & DesignAug. 14, 2012
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[Herald Interview] FORCA to foster relocation of Japanese firms to Korea
For decades, business associations have been known for aggressive lobbying of policymakers while passively responding to calls for corporate social responsibility. The Korea Foreign Company Association, the largest foreign business community in the country, is seeking to change this image and expand its role to attract overseas businesses.Kim Jong-shik, the newly appointed chairman of FORCA, says the organization is drawing up a plan help transfer the headquarters of Japanese firms to Seoul this
IndustryMarch 27, 2012
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[Herald Interview] Shinwon eyes another big leap with luxury fashion
Chairman confident of economic benefits from having production lines in N.K.’s Gaeseong Industrial ComplexShinwon Group, a leading fashion retailer, was one of the first South Korean companies to enter the inter-Korean industrial complex in Gaeseong, the North Korean border town, in 2004.Despite the political tension between the two Koreas, Shinwon chairman Park Sung-chul still has no doubts about the decision he made eight years ago.“North Koreans are skilled workers as they are willing to work
IndustryMarch 6, 2012