Former baseball player Park Chan-ho is answering questions from reporters after paying his respects at the funeral hall of the late Shin Kyuk-ho, Honorary Chairman of Lotte Group, set up at Seoul Asan Medical Center in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 21st. (Photo by Yonhap News)
[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] On the last day of paying respects to Lotte Group founder Honorary Chairman Shin Kyuk-ho on the 21st, visitors continued to come to mourn the deceased. The line of mourners stretched across various fields, from the Shinsegae Group family, considered rivals in the distribution industry, to former baseball player Park Chan-ho.
At the funeral hall set up at Seoul Asan Medical Center that day, second son Shin Dong-bin, Chairman of Lotte Group, and eldest son Shin Dong-joo, former Vice Chairman of Lotte Holdings (currently Chairman of SDJ Corporation), welcomed mourners together as they did the previous day.
In the afternoon, Shin Yong-jin, Vice Chairman of Shinsegae Group, visited the funeral hall with his mother, Lee Myung-hee, Chairwoman of Shinsegae. Chairwoman Lee and Vice Chairman Shin stayed at the funeral hall for 45 minutes, comforting the bereaved family. This was the longest condolence visit excluding relatives.
Chairwoman Lee is known to have a close relationship with Shin Young-ja, the eldest daughter of Honorary Chairman Shin and Chairwoman of the Lotte Scholarship Foundation. After paying respects, Chairwoman Lee told reporters, “I have been a long-time friend of former Chairwoman Shin Young-ja,” and added, “I talked a lot about old times with Chairman Shin Dong-bin.”
LG Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries Huh Chang-soo, Hanwha Vice Chairman Geum Chun-soo, Yoo Kyung-sun, Chairman of Eugene Group, Coupang CEO Kim Beom-seok, and Kyochon Chairman So Jin-se also visited the funeral hall. Former Minister of Justice Kang Kum-sil, Chairwoman of the nonprofit organization Seonui and Honorary Chairman’s limited guardian, former Minister of Strategy and Finance Park Jae-wan, and former Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Ki-kwon also paid their respects.
Shinsegae Group Chairwoman Lee Myung-hee and Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin visited Seoul Asan Medical Center on the afternoon of the 21st to pay their respects to the late Lotte Group Honorary Chairman Shin Kyuk-ho.
In the sports world, footsteps to mourn the deceased continued. In the afternoon, former Major Leaguer Park Chan-ho, known as the “Korean Express,” visited the funeral hall and shared anecdotes related to the deceased, expressing his condolences. Park was appointed as a promotional ambassador for Lotte Hotel in 1998, establishing a connection with the deceased.
Park recalled, “The Chairman said he wanted to help and was happy to see people like me who perform well for the country,” adding, “My wife’s grandfather was also from the same generation who became self-made in Japan, so we had many stories to share and I learned a lot.”
Boxer Hong Soo-hwan, who wrote the “4-time failure, 5-time success” legend, remembered the deceased as a guardian who helped him since his days as an Oriental champion. He said, “I admire the Chairman’s mindset of challenging more when things didn’t go well. The 4-time failure, 5-time success in boxing was fully reflected in his life,” and added, “It is difficult to reach the top in any field. I respect his life as a champion in his own domain.”
A longtime friend of the deceased also visited the funeral hall and shared stories about Honorary Chairman Shin. Architect Okuno Sho (81), Chairman of Okuno Design Office, who jointly developed Seoul Sogong-dong Lotte Hotel and Jamsil Lotte World, said, “The person I think of is Superman and a great man,” adding, “He had a human warmth and friendliness, and I have known him for 50 years.”
Chairman Okuno said, “At that time, despite the poor conditions where the taxi floor to Seoul had holes, the Chairman said he would develop Lotte Hotel with 1,000 rooms,” and added, “Despite everyone’s opposition, the development of Lotte World also became a symbol of Lotte today.”
Honorary Chairman Shin passed away at 4:29 p.m. on the 19th at the age of 99. The funeral will be held as a group funeral to honor the founder of Lotte Group. The funeral procession will begin at 6 a.m. on the 22nd, followed by a memorial service at 7 a.m. at the Lotte Concert Hall on the 8th floor of Seoul Lotte World Mall.
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