Controversy Over Selling Old Snack Bag for 70,000 Won
"Struggling to Make a Living Due to Corona... Sorry"
Yeongyang-gun Cheong Also Posts Public Apology on Website
A market vendor who sold a 1.5kg bag of traditional snacks for 70,000 won at the Yeongyang Wild Vegetable Festival, sparking a 'price gouging controversy,' has finally apologized.
On the 6th, a post titled “I am the vendor who sold snacks at the Yeongyang Wild Vegetable Festival” was uploaded on the Yeongyang County Office website's free bulletin board. The author, Mr. A, stated, “I will not make excuses. Due to the difficulties caused by COVID-19, I was struggling to make a living, and I admit I was short-sighted in setting the snack price too high.”
Mr. A apologized, saying, “I am sorry to all the vendors and the staff of '1 Night 2 Days.' This is the first time I have experienced such a situation, so I don’t know how to express myself properly. I hope my sincerity is conveyed. I am truly sorry.”
Earlier, on the 4th, the KBS 2TV variety show ‘1 Night 2 Days’ aired footage of the cast visiting Yeongyang Traditional Market in Yeongyang County, Gyeongbuk Province, during the 18th Yeongyang Wild Vegetable Festival.
However, controversy arose when the cast purchased snacks at a traditional snack shop inside the festival venue, and the total price for three bags of snacks amounted to 210,000 won. Surprised by the high price, the cast wanted to cancel the purchase, but the vendor said the packaging was already complete, leading to a negotiation scene. Eventually, the vendor sold the three bags of snacks for 140,000 won, saying, “Since you are celebrities, I will give you a discount.”
After the broadcast, netizens criticized the price, saying things like “Are traditional snacks more expensive than beef?” and “This is outright price gouging.” It was pointed out that when the vendor weighed the snack bags, one bag was priced at 68,569 won but was rounded up to 70,000 won. Also, the vendor mixed various types of snacks but based the weight on the highest-priced seed candy, which was criticized.
"Reputation damaged and unfair"…Official apology amid growing controversy
Despite this, a post with the same title uploaded the previous day claimed, “It is unfair that my reputation has been damaged by false rumors that one bag cost 70,000 won,” which intensified the controversy.
In that post, the author stated, “Because false stories were publicized as truth and spread everywhere, I am unable to conduct business. I want to clarify the exact truth. During the filming of '1 Night 2 Days,' singer Kim Jong-min and two others, a total of three people, visited the shop, and the accurate fact is that the total price for the three bags of selected traditional snacks was 70,000 won.”
He added, “False rumors that one bag cost 70,000 won have damaged my reputation and labeled me a fraud. Furthermore, it is damaging the image of all night market vendors. Why would I tarnish my reputation and commit fraud just to earn a few more ten thousand won on a big show like '1 Night 2 Days'? I am truly unfairly treated.”
Mr. A changed his stance within a day, explaining, “The post I uploaded yesterday was written by a neighboring vendor who felt sorry for me, but it seems that posting it so hastily only made it sound more like an excuse.”
Yeongyang County: "Not just an issue with outside vendors, measures will be taken"
Meanwhile, Yeongyang County initially explained the price gouging controversy by stating, “The external vendor who sold traditional snacks during the 18th Yeongyang Wild Vegetable Festival is completely unrelated to the Yeongyang Traditional Market vendors,” which fueled the controversy.
On the same day, Yeongyang County issued a public apology, stating, “We acknowledge that it was inappropriate to mention this incident as if it were solely the problem of an external vendor in the previously distributed explanation and apologize.”
They added, “This issue occurred because Yeongyang County did not properly manage itinerant vendors while hosting the festival. We will establish measures to ensure proper commercial order that meets public expectations to prevent recurrence of such incidents.”
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
