Designation of Myeongdong Area as Mandatory Price Display Zone... Will Overcharging Disappear?

Jung-gu Holds Meeting with Officials on 29th to Designate Myeongdong Area as Mandatory Price Display Zone ▲Includes Underground Shopping Area from Myeongdong Station to Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station, Enforcement from October after September Grace Period ▲Up to 10 Million KRW Fine for Violations of Price Display Rules in Designated Areas

Starting in October, when purchasing clothing, accessories, or miscellaneous goods in Myeongdong, consumers will be able to buy items at the displayed price in accordance with the mandatory price display regulation.

Jung-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Kim Gil-seong) held a meeting on the 29th at the district office's planning situation room to designate Myeongdong as a mandatory price display area. About 30 people, including representatives from the Myeongdong Tourism Special Zone Council, Myeongdong Merchants Association, Myeongdong Underground Shopping Merchants Association, and Seoul city officials, gathered as Jung-gu listened to opinions on the scope of the mandatory price display area designation, grace period, and implementation date.

The price display system is a regulation requiring businesses to display prices on goods they produce or sell to provide consumers with accurate price information and promote competition among businesses. It applies to 51 retail industries classified under the Korean Standard Industrial Classification, including clothing, miscellaneous goods, and accessories. Once designated as a mandatory price display area, all retail stores or retail stores within large stores must display prices. Violations can result in fines of up to 10 million KRW. Jung-gu successfully established the price display system by designating Namdaemun Market as a mandatory price display area in 2012.

Although the Myeongdong area is designated as a tourism special zone, it is not currently a mandatory price display area. Due to a surge in tourists visiting Myeongdong in the first half of this year, issues such as price inflation at some street shops and stores have arisen, prompting the district to conduct daily inspections in Myeongdong since the end of July. Additionally, the district is pushing to designate Myeongdong as a mandatory price display area to restore the image and trust of Korea’s representative tourist destination and to prevent overcharging practices from prevailing.

The target area covers the Myeongdong commercial district spanning from Euljiro 16 to Euljiro 82, Samil-daero 299, and Toegye-ro 97, covering a total of 0.42 square kilometers from Myeongdong Station to Euljiro 1-ga Station, including the underground shopping mall. The district plans to have a grace period throughout September and officially implement the price display policy starting in October.

However, since street vendors are subject to the ‘Street Vendor Operation Regulations,’ the district is also considering revising these regulations to sanction ‘non-display’ and ‘false display’ of prices by street vendors.

The district also plans to enact the ‘Good Price Store Support Ordinance’ within this year to provide incentives to excellent retail stores that comply well with the price display system. The Good Price Store plaques will include English, Chinese, and Japanese translations, and stores will receive goods worth approximately 1 million KRW annually. Furthermore, the district plans to link this with the unsecured special credit guarantees provided to small business owners since August 7.

Myeongdong Mandatory Price Display Zone

The attendees generally expressed support for the district’s proposed mandatory price display area designation. They also said, “We hope that merchants will continue to work together to further improve Myeongdong’s image and revitalize the commercial district.”

Kim Gil-seong, Mayor of Jung-gu, said, “I thank the merchants who actively cooperated with the designation of the mandatory price display area,” adding, “We will continue to actively support Myeongdong, which has passed through a long tunnel due to COVID-19, so that it can dream of a second leap forward.”