'Old Snacks for 70,000 Won' Merchant: "I Paid 1.8 Million Won Just for Seat Fees"... Festival 'Overcharging' Enters a New Phase

Overcharging and Seat Fees Also Play a Role in Price Inflation

At the Gyeongbuk Yeongyang-gun Wild Vegetable Festival, a controversy over overcharging arose after selling 1.5kg of traditional snacks for 70,000 won. It has now taken a new turn as it was revealed that the vendor paid 1.8 million won in seat fees to a broker.

According to an MBC report on the 21st, the chronic problem of overcharging at local festivals is due to a structural practice of inflated seat fees. A broker was involved in the middle.

Photo by KBS2, screenshot from the broadcast of '1 Night 2 Days Season 4'

The festival operates on a system where the local merchants' association charges seat fees to recruit street vendors. The official seat fee is 50,000 won per day. However, the 'traditional snacks' vendor, who sparked the overcharging controversy, reportedly paid as much as 1.8 million won to enter the night market. This vendor was also a victim of overcharging.

The person who received the money was not a member of the merchants' association but a broker known as the so-called 'team leader.' The team leader professionally won the bid for a section of the night market space from the festival organizing committee and then redistributed it to out-of-town merchants traveling to festivals nationwide, charging a premium.

The broker deducted brokerage fees for reasons such as installing tents and banners necessary for night market operations, setting up electrical facilities, and arranging performance groups to boost the atmosphere, causing seat fees to skyrocket. It is reported that the broker collected approximately 30 million won from street vendors at this year's Yeongyang Wild Vegetable Festival.

Street vendors who entered through the broker complained, "We had to spend hundreds of thousands on seat fees even before the festival started."

Vendors who paid only the official seat fee entered after consultations between local governments and farmers to set appropriate prices, satisfying consumers. However, the overcharging by vendors who entered through brokers damaged the overall image of the festival.

A farmer who has participated in the Yeongyang Wild Vegetable Festival for 17 years said, "There are about two months left until the start of chili pepper sales, and I am really worried about how Yeongyang-gun's image will be then."