From free air tickets and special discounts on burgers to vaccinated-only seats at concerts, local industries are revving up their marketing efforts to target the rapidly growing number of Koreans getting their COVID-19 vaccine shots. As of Sunday, over 15 million people, or some 29.2 percent of the total population, have received at least one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, surpassing the government’s initial goal of inoculating 13 million in the first half of this year, according to the Ko

Han Sung Motor, an official Mercedes-Benz dealer, on Thursday opened an online store offering merchandise made by students participating in its Dream Gream art scholarship program. The store sells merchandise made by its scholarship recipients, artistically gifted middle and highs school students, in collaboration with professional artists. Items on sale include note papers, decorative masking tape, travel bags and fabric sprays, as well as items produced in collaboration with companies inclu

Merck Korea is offering education on semiconductor and display solutions to local high school and college students studying related subjects, as part of its ESG initiative, the company said Thursday. According to the Korean unit of the science and technology company, the new education program comes after Kai Beckmann, member of the executive board of Merck and CEO of the Electronics, and Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung agreed on a partnership in April. During their meeting, the two sid

A consortium of South Korean retail giant Shinsegae Group and internet behemoth Naver is expected to win a bid to take over eBay Korea, local media reported Wednesday. If materialized, the deal would set off a major shake-up in the country’s e-commerce retail segment. No official announcement had been made as of Wednesday afternoon. In a regulatory filing Wednesday afternoon, E-mart, Shinsegae Group’s retail affiliate, said it was participating in the tender and in discussions

Amid growing awareness of the importance of environmental, social and corporate governance principles, South Korea’s lawmakers, entrepreneurs and scientists gathered Tuesday to promote sustainable growth by launching an ESG forum. Attending the kickoff event were lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, including Reps. Lee Won-wook, Hong Ihk-pyo and Lee Yong-bin, and representatives of organizations such as the Korea Enterprises Federation, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and I

A new craft beer inspired by white sheep, a symbol of a local underwear brand, will hit CU convenience store shelves on Thursday. The Baik Yang BYC Vienna Lager is the third collaboration beer launched by CU, according to BGF Retail, the firm behind the convenience store chain. BYC is an underwear brand, established in 1946. The company is well known for its white undershirts, and it has used an image of a white sheep as its symbol from 1957, according to CU. The name of the beer and symbo

Procter and Gamble Korea published two children’s books about the importance of protecting the environment, as part of its efforts to raise consumer awareness on the idea of sustainability, the company said Sunday. P&G Korea said the two books, titled “My House is Flooded” and “I’m not Buying Things That I Already Have,” had been written so that children can easily understand the importance of the environment and take actions with their families to benef

Audi Korea is launching the new RS Q8, a high-performance sports utility vehicle that combines both dynamic driving and practicality, the automaker said Friday. According to Audi Korea, it will start receiving orders for the new RS Q8 here on Tuesday. The RS Q8 is the first large SUV to be launched under the RS category, the auto brand’s high-performance lineup which stands for Racing Sport. The SUV has twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 gasoline engine and an eight-speed automatic transm

Automakers and mobility service providers gathered at Seoul Smart Mobility Expo on Thursday to show off their latest electric vehicles and mobility technologies. In the three-day expo that kicked off at the Oil Tank Culture Park in Seoul, the country’s leading automaker Hyundai Motor Group’s Genesis brand unveiled the first electric powertrain variant of its luxury sedan Genesis G80 for the first time in the country. The model made its overseas debut at the 2021 Shanghai Internati

SPC Group is launching the Paris Baguette bakery franchise in Cambodia, opening the first branch in the country‘s capital city, the company said Wednesday. According to SPC Group, the Korean firm behind bakery brand Paris Baguette, it forged ties with Cambodia’s HSC Group to open the first Paris Baguette store in Phnom Penh. Cambodia is the sixth country in which Paris Baguette has launched, and it is the first time the bakery operator has formed a joint venture for its overseas

As part of its corporate social responsibility efforts, Posco International has installed “green curtains” made of perennial vines on the façade of a middle school in Incheon, the company said Tuesday. Posco International, the trade arm of the country’s leading steelmaker Posco, said it donated 30 million won ($27,000) to put up the perennial vines on the outer walls of the cafeteria and library of Neungheodae Middle School in Incheon. For the project, the company j

INJE, Gangwon Province -- A line of high-performance vehicles could be seen whizzing around the racing circuit of Inje Speedium in Gangwon Province on Wednesday, the growls from their engines echoing throughout the venue. It was part of the Audi Driving Experience, an annual event Audi Korea organizes to offer car enthusiasts an opportunity to try out its highest-end vehicles and its latest automotive technologies. This year, Audi Korea presented 10 vehicles, including the electric vehicle

Porsche Korea has launched Taycan Turbo, a high-performance model of the brand’s first electric vehicle, the company said Thursday. Taycan Turbo is the third Taycan variant to be launched here in Korea, and stands in between Taycan Turbo S and Taycan 4S, performance-wise. Like the Taycan Turbo S -- the higher-performing variant -- it is equipped with a Performance Battery Plus, with a gross capacity of 93.4 kilowatt hours as standard. Using launch control, the vehicle can exert up to 68

Kumho Tire is exclusively supplying its best-selling tire Ecsta HS51 for Renault Samsung Motors’ compact sports utility vehicle Arkana -- known as the XM3 in South Korea -- distributed in Europe, the company said Thursday. According to the South Korean tire manufacturer, Ecsta HS51 is their best-selling tire in Europe, using rubber and high grip resin for enhanced braking function. The model is noted for a variety of technologies and devices, such as Virtual Product Development simulat

Man Truck and Bus Korea has been designated as the German truck maker’s regional headquarters, managing 12 countries in the Austral and Asia region, an executive board member from the German headquarters said on Thursday. Participating in a press conference held in Seoul, Goran Nyberg, an executive board member for sales and marketing at Man Truck and Bus, said the Korean branch will be playing a bigger role in the group’s business operations. He also spoke of complaints raised by

Ford Sales and Service Korea received a correction order from the Fair Trade Commission for misrepresenting one of its vehicles as having a rear braking support system, the watchdog agency said Monday. According to the FTC, the importer and seller of the US-based Ford advertised in 2019 that its sport utility vehicle the Ford Explorer Limited was equipped with a reverse braking system, which was not true. In brochures and on its official website, the automaker had said the function helped t

Audi Volkswagen Korea is committed to going net zero by 2050 and hopes to set an example for the car industry, the automaker said Friday. In a press conference, Audi Volkswagen Korea Group Managing Director Rene Koneberg said pursuing carbon neutrality is a task that everyone should work together to achieve. To highlight the seriousness of the climate change issue and the importance of reducing our carbon footprint, Audi Volkswagen Korea has also opened an exhibition titled “goTOzero&r

Posco has taken another step forward in the secondary battery recycling business, as it landed a new partnership deal with Chinese cobalt supplier Huayou Cobalt on Friday. The steelmaker inked a joint investment deal with the government of South Jeolla Province and Huayou Cobalt, a Shanghai-listed company specializing in material refining and purification. The secondary recycling business involves extracting core materials used in making secondary batteries, such as nickel and lithium fro

Under a light drizzle on Thursday morning, a group of young people stood outside a McDonald’s in Sinchon, Seoul, waiting in line. “Since the announcement in April, I have been waiting for the launch of the BTS Meal, and I am very glad to finally have it today,” Toni Yeptho told The Korea Herald as she stepped outside with a McDonald’s meal to go. Not just any meal, but the BTS Meal. Clad in her green BTS sweatshirt, Toni, an exchange student from India, introduced he

Volvo Cars Korea was once one of the back markers in South Korea’s automotive market, but it has emerged as a force to be reckoned with in recent years, thanks to its reputation for safety. As cases accumulated over time that highlighted Volvo cars’ strength, the automaker’s sales, which were still below 2,000 units in 2013, have surpassed the 10,000-unit mark for two years running, setting a new sales record of 12,798 units in 2020. Now, the automaker is charging ahead for