Interview with Kim Juyong, CEO of Lala Classic
Renowned Old Car Collector... Expanding into Cultural Projects
Collects Daimler DS 420 Limousine, Pony2 Hatchback, and More
Also Involved in Electric Vehicle Conversion Business
[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] Recently, domestic old cars have frequently appeared in movies and commercials, expanding the base of the domestic old car market. There are also cases where old car collecting has evolved into a cultural business through exhibitions, events, and museum establishments.
Juyong Kim, CEO of Lala Classic, is a well-known old car collector in Korea. He owns over 130 old cars, valued at nearly 10 billion KRW. Over the past five years, Lala Classic has jointly operated an old car museum located at Inje Speedium with the Taeyoung Group. They are also planning to establish an old car museum in Yeongam, Jeollanam-do, where the F1 racetrack is located.
Lala Classic rents out old cars that appear as props in movies and commercials as part of its cultural business. Under current law, old car collecting companies without rental car permits are prohibited from renting to the general public. Therefore, they only operate rental services for use as props in content. They even lent a Pony 2 to the TV entertainment program "You Quiz on the Block." Rental fees range from as low as 500,000 KRW to as high as 3 million KRW for very rare models.
Among the domestic old cars collected by CEO Kim, his most cherished model is the Pony 2 hatchback. While many Pony 2 pickup truck models remain in Korea, there are fewer than ten Pony 2 hatchbacks. The original price was around 2 million KRW, but now it costs over 40 million KRW to acquire one on the market. Among imported models, the most difficult to obtain was the British Daimler DS 420 limousine. This car is known as the official state car of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother of the United Kingdom. A modified version of this car was also used as the hearse for Princess Diana’s funeral. CEO Kim purchased this car for about 150 million KRW and expects its value to continue rising.
CEO Kim is involved not only in cultural businesses but also in old car modification projects. The exterior remains that of an old car, but the engine is replaced with an electric motor. The old car modification business has recently gained attention as part of the eco-friendly future car industry. Lala Classic is participating in an electric vehicle modification demonstration project in Jeollanam-do in collaboration with the Korea Automotive Technology Institute. In August last year, the government designated Jeollanam-do as a "Regulation-Free Zone for Modified Electric Vehicles."
CEO Kim said, "The old car business area includes not only cultural businesses such as events and exhibitions but also various fields such as general maintenance, restoration, and modification. If regulations are eased, the domestic old car market, which mainly focuses on popular models, could grow much larger than it is now."
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