Data&Research, Q1 Online Big Data Analysis
Under Armour·Lip Balm Followed by Skechers Go Walk Popularity↑
Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong was found to have received the most attention online in South Korea among conglomerate heads during the first quarter of this year. The public's interest, which even gave him nicknames like 'JaeDragon' and 'Jae-yong hyung,' has been proven by the numbers.
According to a big data analysis conducted by polling agency Data & Research on 230,000 sites across 12 channels?including news, communities, cafes, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, KakaoStory, Knowledge iN, companies, organizations, and government?regarding the heads of the top 30 publicly disclosed corporate groups in South Korea, Chairman Lee recorded a total of 71,089 online mentions from January to March, ranking first in interest among heads of the top 30 groups.
Born in 1968, Chairman Lee's estimated assets amount to approximately 13.225 trillion KRW. His humble and unpretentious anecdotes have often been revealed, gaining public popularity. Famous stories include him cooking ramen at a friend's rented room during university days and eating delivery chicken immediately after being released following a second trial verdict. He also attracted attention for personally receiving reports on next-generation strategic products from MZ generation (Millennial + Z generation) employees, laughing together, taking selfies, and dining together in the company cafeteria.
The items he chooses sell out one after another. He is a 'sold-out man' comparable to many celebrities. Since he was spotted wearing Under Armour polo shirts in the U.S. in 2014, the then lesser-known Under Armour brand suddenly gained popularity in Korea. The red padded jacket he wore in 2019, despite its high price of 1.3 million KRW and the unfamiliar brand Arc'teryx, also sold out successfully.
During the 2016 National Assembly hearing for the state audit, the 2,300 KRW lip balm from the American cosmetics company Softlips that he applied multiple times was dubbed the 'Lee Jae-yong lip balm' and attracted significant attention. Although the product was not released domestically, the enthusiasm for direct overseas purchases led to its official launch in Korea. Recently, Skechers Go Walk shoes have become popular as the 'Lee Jae-yong shoes.' Priced in the 90,000 KRW range and rumored to be recommended by doctors for plantar fasciitis patients, they continue to be loved steadily.
Meanwhile, the top 10 conglomerate heads who received the most attention following Chairman Lee in this survey were ▲Choi Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group ▲Chung Eui-sun, Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group ▲Jung Yong-jin, Chairman of Shinsegae Group ▲Shin Dong-bin, Chairman of Lotte Group ▲Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group ▲Jung Ki-sun, Vice Chairman of HD Hyundai ▲Kim Seung-yeon, Chairman of Hanwha Group ▲Cho Won-tae, Chairman of Hanjin Group ▲and Lee Joong-geun, Chairman of Booyoung Group, in that order.
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