Pangyo Hair Salon Membership Scam Controversy
"I Didn't Know About the Unauthorized Use of Likeness Rights"
Singer Lim Chang-jung has come forward to clarify the so-called 'eat-and-run' controversy, where he allegedly sold memberships to over 100 people at a hair salon opened under his name and then closed the business.
Lim Chang-jung's agency, Yes I Am Entertainment, stated on the 23rd, "The hair salon located in Bundang, reported in the news, was opened around 2014 with full investment from Lim Chang-jung to help a hometown friend (hereafter Mr. S)." They explained, "However, after opening, the direction pursued in operating the salon did not align, so a few months later, the invested amount was refunded and the business was closed."
The agency claims that Mr. S continued to operate the salon independently under the condition that Lim Chang-jung's image and name would not be used.
They also stated that contact with Mr. S has been lost since then and that they were unaware that the business continued using Lim Chang-jung's photo and portrait rights without permission.
On the 23rd, reports emerged that a hair salon in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, opened under the name of an acquaintance by Lim Chang-jung in 2014, recently closed after allegedly taking customers' prepaid usage fees and disappearing.
It also appears that the salon's affiliated designers did not receive their salaries and only learned of the closure afterward. Residents affected by this are reportedly preparing to file lawsuits.
In 2014, Lim Chang-jung appeared on a radio program and mentioned opening a hair salon in front of his house in Pangyo. He said, "I wanted to get my hair done quickly when I had a schedule," and added, "There was no special reason; it just happened that I opened it with a friend." At that time, he personally promoted the salon by posting on his SNS account, "Looks like I opened a hair shop in front of my Pangyo house! Please stop by on March 25," along with a promotional flyer photo.
Earlier on the 21st, reports also surfaced that the acting academy run by Lim Chang-jung, Yes I Am Academy, failed to pay actors their fees after a commercial shoot last year. The advertiser reportedly paid the academy all the actors' fees, but the academy did not pass the payments on to the actors.
The former representative of the academy, Mr. A, stated that after Lim Chang-jung's stock manipulation controversy in April last year, the academy went bankrupt and has been unable to pay over 30 million won in fees. However, he emphasized that Lim Chang-jung was not involved in the academy's operations and was only used as a model.
Following these reports, Lim Chang-jung's agency, Yes I Am Entertainment, issued a statement saying, "Yes I Am Academy is a company completely unrelated to Yes I Am Entertainment and Lim Chang-jung," and added, "The reported unpaid fees incident also has no connection to Lim Chang-jung."
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