In the era of fast fashion, the life cycle of clothing is becoming shorter. People consume clothes as if they are disposable goods, driven by the supply of low-cost, trendy clothes offered by fashion giants such as Zara and H&M. However, the philosophy of COS goes against this fashion trend ― it believes fashion and longevity should go hand-in-hand, said Marie Honda, managing director of the com...

The full moon is the ruler of the night at the North Pole, casting a yellow glow on the snow-covered surface. What seems like the only moving object is a man kite-skiing through serenity. The stunning photograph was shot by Sebastian Copeland, polar explorer, photographer and environmental advocate. “The full moon at the North Pole means the sun is aligned on the opposite end. You could see the...

Dedicated and personalized service is key to the success of Hilton Namhae Golf & Spa Resort in South Korea, which has been awarded as the country’s leading resort by the World Travel Awards for eight consecutive years, its general manager said. “People are now searching for a lot more information through the various media and this makes them want a more personalized holiday matching their own pr...

Seoul is fast becoming a battlefield for steakhouses as Wolfgang’s Steakhouse ― one of New York’s best high-end steakhouse chains ― started its operations Monday. But what is the most important in a good piece of steak is the ingredient itself rather than having a star-chef, said Peter Zwiener, managing partner of the restaurant, showing his disdain for the current restaurant craze of showcasing...

In today’s competitive business environment, it is crucial that organizations should have the best available talent positioned in the right place and in order to address such needs, a combined mechanism of behavioral science and business strategy may be of use. “Companies pay much attention to talent, as well as to their organization, but few tend to take the two aspects in a comprehensive persp...

With technological development many things in life have become simpler and easier. The way we enter a house will soon become much “smarter” as well, with facial recognition technology set to replace sets of keys. Jeong Gyu-taek, chief executive of start-up FiveGT, which produces facial recognition devices, is a South Korean tech pioneer who wants to keep the home safe and secure through biometri...

Hong Sung-dam, a high-profile South Korean satirical painter, has likened the role of an artist to a rabbit in a submarine. Rabbits are sensitive to a lack of oxygen and were often taken aboard submarines. If the boat’s rabbit had difficulty breathing, sailors sensed danger and rose to the surface. Hong argues that artists should be no different from a rabbit in a submarine. They should perceiv...

Global food manufacturers find the Chinese market a tough nut to crack. The U.S. government recently complained about China’s subsidies to enterprises including food manufacturers. Last year, E-mart, Korea’s largest supermarket chain, pulled out of China after 17 years of operations there. Despite such difficulties, the Chinese food market, with its 1.4 billion customers, is still enticing to ...

So-called curated dining businesses, collections of famous restaurants under one roof, are catching on in Korea. According to the founders of Over the Dish, a Seoul-based restaurant curator, success in the industry is all about location and a competitive edge in theme selection. “It seems like a fad ― from the high-end Galleria Department Store in southern Seoul with Gourmet 494 to the rather a...

Long loved in Korea for gentle tunes such as “Rainbow Bridge” and “Day by Day,” composer and pianist Steve Barakatt has returned this time with an epic symphony that he hopes will “wow” fans. Barakatt will be showcasing, for the first time in Korea, his symphonic work “Ad Vitam Aeternam” ― “for eternity” in Latin ― alongside conductor Kim Bong-mee and Herald Philharmonic Orchestra. Written in 1...

Three-time Grammy nominee and up-and-coming singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran is becoming one of the decade’s most notable breakthrough artists. The 24-year-old musician, who went quintuple platinum in the U.K. with his 2011 debut album “+,” will be making his way to Korea to hold his first concert here. Sheeran’s debut album, featuring hit singles “The A Team” and “Lego House,” earned him the Best ...

When the governing Saenuri Party picked Jasmine Lee to serve as a lawmaker in April 2012, hate groups attacked her as a “dark-skinned” foreigner posing as a Korean. Saenuri officials hoped Lee, the first Philippine-born lawmaker here, would encourage “diversity” in a dominantly homogenous, and sometimes xenophobic South Korea, to better represent naturalized citizens, foreign laborers, and other...

A Korean company is helping develop infrastructure for the rising tourism industry on Myanmar as it plans to build and operate the first cable car in Mount Kyaiktiyo in Mon State next year. “The cable car will give easier access to Kyaiktiyo Pagoda, better known as the golden rock, located at the summit of the 1,100-meter high mountain,’’ Sky Asia CEO Yoo Sun-ha said in a recent interview with T...

South Korea should take advantage of cooperation between Russia and North Korea to smooth the way for regional economic integration and improve inter-Korean relations, an expert said in an interview with The Korea Herald last week. According to Park Byung-in, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies and at Kyungnam University’s Department of Political Science and Diplomacy, the recen...