Wednesday, 09 Sep 2020 11:39 AM MYT
You says he is now busier than ever, due to the resurgence in coronavirus, tearing down sign boards and cash registers at shuttered hair salons, BBQ buffets and other places whose business model is based around human contact. Tough social distancing rules to curb a second wave of coronavirus have markedly slowed retail traffic and emptied cafes across Seoul since mid-August.
“Second-hand goods have been piling up and we have nowhere to sell them to, so the coronavirus has been really bad for us,” said Cho, pointing to used fridges, rice cookers and waffle makers all cleaned up and displayed in glass racks.Inventory glut at recycled kitchenware stores and booming liquidation businesses point to battered family retailers in every corner of the country.
South Korea has one of the world’s highest proportion of self-employed people, about 25 per cent of the job market, making it very vulnerable to downturns. A 2017 Bank of Korea study showed only 38 per cent of the self-employed businesses survive three years. The government has warned South Koreans for several years not to open more fried chicken shops or cafes as the small hospitality sector is saturated.On top of the coronavirus pandemic, that has also fuelled an acceleration of e-commerce, small businesses are fighting spiking rents, a shorter work week and higher minimum wages under the left-leaning President Moon Jae-in.