In the middle of bustling downtown Seoul, there is a building that strikes a bright, open figure, quickly making it one of the youngest landmarks of the capital and the “it” place to visit.It’s South Korean cosmetics company Amorepacific’s headquarters, which occupies a site in Yongsan. The building was designed by David Chipperfield, who described the structure as “abstract and gestural.” According to Chipperfield, he was inspired by the refined beauty of a white porcelain moon-shaped pot that

Asiana Airlines said Wednesday that its inflight meal service had returned to normal as of Wednesday, marking an end to a monthslong so-called “inflight meal fiasco.”The airline said inflight meals manufactured by Gate Gourmet Korea had been served on Flight 731 bound for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Wednesday at 7:30 a.m. The supplier will now be providing some 30,000 meals a day for 81 flights departing from Gimpo and Incheon, it added. 　 Asiana AirlinesIn July, Gate Gourmet Korea was contracted

Ssangyong Engineering and Construction has won a high-rise construction project in Malaysia, the firm said Monday. The project involves construction of the 339-meter-tall Oxyley Towers located at Kuala Lumpur City Centre in Malaysia’s largest city.  Ssangyong E&C’s planned construction of Oxyley Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (Ssangyong E&C)Oxyley Towers’ three buildings of 79, 49 and 29 stories above ground will include SO Sofitel Hotel, Jumeirah Hotel, residences and offices.Ssangyong E&C sa

Sout Korea’s second-largest air carrier Asiana Airlines has named the new president, the group said Monday, about two months after a massive disruption to the carrier’s in-flight meal service. In July, the air carrier’s catering service for some international routes was suspended in the process of changing the airline’s meal suppliers, prompting questions of unfair contracts.The company said Han Chang-soo, who has headed the group’s IT management unit Asiana IDT, will be the new president. The C

Starbucks Korea is testing out the use of paper straws at some 100 stores across Seoul, Busan and Jeju, the company said Monday. The two-month-long trial is part of the global coffeehouse chain’s plan to phase out plastic straws and reduce the negative impact on the environment.  (Yonhap)After gathering consumer feedback through the test run, paper straws will be introduced at all its stores in November, the company said. For the first two weeks starting from Monday, Starbucks Korea will provide

CJ Logistics, a parcel delivery business unit of CJ Group, said Sunday that it will expand delivery services for the upcoming Chuseok holiday. CJ Logistics staff sort parcels. (CJ Logistics)Starting Monday, the company will begin a five-week special holiday delivery service period and operate emergency teams at its headquarters, it said. The three-day holiday takes place from Sept. 23-25. As part of such efforts, the company will expand its workforce, keep track of parcel volume and enhance auto

LG Chem, the chemicals and biopharma business unit of South Korea’s fourth-largest conglomerate LG Group, said Sunday that its management executives including Vice Chairman and CEO Park Jin-soo visited Los Angeles to recruit talent from around the globe. LG Chem Vice Chairman and CEO Park Jin-soo talks with participants of the company’s recruiting event in Los Angeles. (LG Chem)Every year since taking office in 2012, Park has participated in the company’s global recruiting event, which takes pla

Belgium wheat beer brand Hoegaarden is launching a new digital advertisement and an exclusive lounge as part of a promotional campaign, its South Korean distributor Oriental Brewery said Thursday.  Hoegaarden poster. (OB)According to OB, the digital ad titled “Make Room for Nature” was created by such artists as members of IAB Studio, florist Kim Young-shin, food stylist Lee Won-mi and photographer Park So-young.The advertisement features how each artist interprets nature. It was inspired by Hoe

South Korean e-commerce firm Coupang said Wednesday it has tapped Doug Inamine as new senior vice president to head its global human resources. Doug Inamine, Coupang’s new global HR senior vice president (Coupang)An HR expert with 25 years of experience who has worked at multinational companies in Asia and Europe, public companies and startups, Inamine is expected to play a positive role in changes and innovations at Coupang, the company said.His experience includes developing recruiting program

South Korean cosmetics company Tonymoly said Tuesday that it will launch this Friday new limited edition products in a collaboration with Samyang Food’s Buldak Spicy Chicken Ramen. According to the company, the limited edition is based on Samyang’s signature instant noodle Buldak Spicy Chicken Ramen packaging and the character.  Advertisement for Tonymoly’s Buldak Spicy Chicken Ramen special edition (Tonymoly)Buldak refers to grilled chicken marinated in a super-spicy red chili paste, as it tran

Z-POP Dream, a global entertainment platform headquartered in South Korea, said Friday it would make use of blockchain technology to discover the next K-pop superstar and build infrastructure in the pop music scene. Z-POP Dream, set up by veteran music industry expert Jun Kang, is the first platform of its kind that seeks to establish a global entertainment ecosystem to better discover hidden pop music talent, according to the firm.The company said the use of blockchain technology will accelerat

Paris Baguette, a bakery chain operated by Korean food giant SPC Group, will begin mobile delivery service from Saturday, the firm said Friday. Customers can order on SPC Group’s own Happy App or food delivery app Yogiyo, in addition to e-commerce channels G-Market or Auction.  Paris Baguette launches its delivery service. (SPC)Products ranging from cakes to bread and sandwiches can be delivered from 1,100 stores across the country, the firm said. It plans to eventually roll out the service for

South Korean dairy manufacturer Namyang Dairy’s products have hit the shelves of Chinese wholesale market Herma Shenzu, part of Alibaba Group, the company said Friday. Herma Shenzu, established in 2016, is a new distribution channel operated by the e-commerce giant Alibaba Group. The markets quickly gained attention by integrating online and offline logistics for fresh foods: When a customer places an order online, an employee from the closest store delivers the product to the customer’s doorste

Retail giant Shinsegae Group’s duty-free operator Shinsegae Duty Free said Thursday that it has partnered with UnionPay to attract more Chinese travelers and provide an easier payment option. UnionPay, a Chinese financial services company established in 2002, is a major bank card service provider in mainland China. As of last year, up to 16,000 trillion won ($14 trillion) of transactions were made through UnionPay. The UnionPay app, which allows users to pay via QR codes, currently has an accumu

South Korean air carrier Asiana Airlines has renovated a school in Uzbekistan capital Tashkent and supplied classroom equipment for local students, according to a firm Wednesday.  Asiana Airlines officials, Uzbekistani authorities and students pose for a photo after a reopening ceremony for a renovated school in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Tuesday. (Asiana Airlines)It was part of the airline’s “Beautiful Classroom” project, a corporate outreach campaign the company began in 2012 to improve the educati

Ikea Korea said Wednesday that it will begin online sales on its website and nationwide delivery from Saturday, in a move to attract online shoppers.The official e-commerce channel will expand shopping options for customers, Ikea Korea CEO Andre Schmidtgall said during a press conference Wednesday. Ikea Korea, the local branch of the Swedish furniture giant, currently runs two stores here -- one in Gwangmyeong that opened in 2014 and one in Ilsan that opened last year -- operated by some 1,700 e

Major South Korean discount chain Homeplus has been speeding up its move to open more big-box and retail hybrid stores here, to strengthen its sales and enhance competitiveness. Homeplus said Tuesday that it has seen outstanding sales growth from its Homeplus Special stores, which sell products in bulk and also offer individually packaged food and other goods like those found in grocery stores.The company has been converting its outlets into Homeplus Special stores since opening its first store

South Korean retail giant Shinsegae’s discount store chain E-mart said Monday that it will test-run its advanced robot concierge service from Wednesday, as well as adopt electronic shelf labels.  E-Mart's robot concierge Pepper (E-Mart)The robot concierge, dubbed Pepper, will help customers at the imported food section of the E-mart Seongsu store. Pepper has been upgraded with an automated-driving mode and an artificial intelligence-based chatbot function since its first round of test runs in Ma

Local branch of the French luxury giant, Chanel Korea has come under fire for allegedly selling a used bag to a Korean customer, raising concerns over its inventory control and management policy.According to local media outlet News One, a Korean customer purchased a Chanel 2.55 flap bag at a department store for 7 million won ($6,280) in April. She later found someone else’s bankbook and credit card inside the bag.The bankbook and credit card had been issued in March, a month before the bag owne

South Korean steelmaker Hyundai Steel’s labor union conducted outreach activities to help underprivileged families and support children from those families to experience a variety of cultural activities.  Members of Hyundai Steel’s labor union who work at the Incheon production line pose for a photo after conducting outreach for underprivileged families in March. (Hyundai Steel)According to the company, the labor union visited Gyeongju Bird Park with 18 children from underprivileged and multicul