[Breaking] Droplet-Blocking Masks Become 'Gold' Amid Hotter Weather... Wellkips Mall Server Down

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] On the 5th, the first sale of droplet-blocking masks, which are thinner and easier to breathe through than public masks and are cheaper in price, caused a frenzy as consumer interest surged, leading to the sales site crashing.

According to the industry, the droplet-blocking masks produced by Wellkips were scheduled to be sold from 9 a.m. on the same day on Wellkips' own online mall at 500 won per mask, limited to 10 packs (30 masks) per person. However, about 20 minutes before the official sale started, consumers flocked to the online mall to purchase masks, causing server instability, and by 9 a.m., the server became inaccessible due to traffic overload.

Droplet-blocking masks had attracted high consumer interest even before their release due to the recently hotter weather. These masks have a particle blocking performance of about 55?80% based on KF standards and are as thin as dental masks (surgical masks), making them easier to breathe through than regular masks. Especially recently, with elementary, middle, and high schools reopening, there was strong demand from parents wanting to buy thinner masks for their children who found wearing masks indoors for long periods uncomfortable.

However, since the purchase of droplet-blocking masks was limited to Wellkips on this day, consumers rushed in rapidly, and as of 9:25 a.m., the site remains inaccessible. Wellkips prepared 200,000 masks for this sale and plans to increase production depending on market conditions.

Although the purchase of droplet-blocking masks was initially limited to the Wellkips online mall on this day, it is expected to expand later. So far, a total of four companies?Wellkips, Geonyeong Cleantec, Finetek, and KM?have received approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for nine droplet-blocking mask products as quasi-drugs. Among them, Wellkips received approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety the fastest and was the first to start sales.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety plans to supply droplet-blocking masks as private distribution items rather than public masks. Accordingly, companies will autonomously decide on mask prices and sales timing, and sales through online channels and offline stores will be considered.