Bentos in Japan, restaurants in Seoul and his own management agency. Korean hunk Bae Yong Joon isn't content to remain as an actor
By Chang May Choon
A TAGLINE on Korean actor Bae Yong Joon's official website reads: (He) never stops. He always comes to us in new ways.
How true.
The bespectacled Winter Sonata star with his signature smile has a way of wooing his fans with fresh and innovative ideas.
His latest manifestation is in bentos (lunchboxes) to be launched at Japan's 7-Eleven convenience store chains this week. No, his face is not on them. But Yong Joon personally picked the 16 Korean dishes in the set meal nicknamed Yonsama bentos, reported Yonhap News Agency.
Yonsama is what his Japanese fans call him affectionately. The bentos are produced by Gosireh, a Korean fine dining restaurant that Yong Joon started in Tokyo in 2006. Priced at 2,500 yen ($32) each and available from Friday to Sunday, they are aimed largely at the Korean actor's middle-aged female fans in Japan.
Yong Joon has become a shrewd entrepreneur with three entertainment companies and three hugely successful eateries. The Chosun Ilbo called him a 'businessman extraordinaire' whose success lies in his perfectionistic nature, his gift of making friends easily and his ability to spot 'lucrative deals'.
Last year, Yong Joon was reportedly the top-earning celebrity in Korea, pocketing a stunning 43.2 billion won ($56m). That's almost twice as much as the 25billion won earned by K-popster Rain, who was in second place. But only a quarter of Yong Joon's income came from his showbiz activities, including product endorsements.
According to TVN cable station's Enews programme, 74 per cent of his earnings came from being a major shareholder of the public-listed KeyEast Inc, which deals mainly in entertainment. In 2006, Yong Joon reportedly invested 9billion won to buy a 40 per cent stake in the company, and his entry immediately sent its share prices soaring.
He had started his own management agency BOF in 2004. He reportedly owns 85 per cent shares in BOF, which manages the careers of artistes like So Ji Sub, Lee Na Young and newbie Lee Ji Ah. More recently, BOF started an office named BOF International in Japan, with Yong Joon holding a 33 per cent stake. Both are now subsidiary companies under KeyEast Inc.
In short, the bespectacled hunk has become 'something of an entertainment magnate' in Korea, said The Chosun Ilbo. The paper added that he plays a 'key' role in KeyEast's management and has plans to promote co-operation within Asia and 'sustain the Korean pop culture boom abroad'.
And he is attracting fans in droves to the three food outlets that he has started under the company Smart Kitchen - a restaurant named Gorilla In The Kitchen and a cafe named Tea Loft, both in Seoul, as well as Gosireh in Tokyo. Just don't expect to see images of him plastered all over the walls.
Yong Joon's presence is in the food instead - he reportedly hand-picked the Western menu at Gorilla In The Kitchen to appeal to the health conscious eater who, like him, wishes to maintain a trim figure. With Gosireh, he has the bigger ambition of popularising Korean cuisine outside of his country.
The restaurant, which reportedly cost a stunning 600 million yen ($7.7m) to set up two years ago, serves royal cuisine that has become so popular that it earns about five billion won ($6.5m) a year. Apparently, Yong Joon tastes and comments on every new menu offered at Gosireh, and he insists on using natural ingredients and organic vegetables.
The restaurant now plans to start a second outlet in Nagoya in July, reported Korean news portal My Daily. A BOF spokesman said that Yong Joon's aim in expanding his business in Japan is not to make money, but rather, to 'continue pushing the Korean Wave forward in Japan through Korean food'.
What's amazing about Yong Joon's approach is that he manages to sustain high media exposure without compromising his low profile. Anything that bears his name seems to get an express ticket into the news. Even without him coming out to do any publicity, his latest drama The Legend was constantly in the news throughout its two years of filming, partly because it broke the record as the most expensive Korean TV production ever.
The mythical story of a Korean king (played by Yong Joon) and four gods cost a staggering 43 billion won to produce. Also hailed as Korea's answer to Lord Of The Rings for its extensive CGI, it is now showing on Channel U at 7.30pm every Saturday and Sunday.
Merchandise from the drama, including a pictorial book, a special DVD, and a bottle of perfume which Yong Joon's character gives to his lover, has been met with a fervent response. Obviously, his hardcore fans of mostly middle-aged woman have never forsaken him.
When he appeared in Japan on 31 May after a three-year absence to promote The Legend, more than 3,000 fans swarmed Kansai airport to welcome him.
MERCHANDISING MANIA
But, even if fans don't get to see him up close, they can still visit any of the five Park BOF outlets that showcase his works and sell his merchandise - from mugs to towels to calendars. They can be found in Seoul and Jeju in Korea, and Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka in Japan.
Singaporean fan Tiffany Oh has tried the food at both Gorilla In The Kitchen and Tea Loft, and also visited Park BOF in Seoul and Jeju. 'It's quite smart of (Yong Joon) to diversify into other areas,' she said.
'Much as I like him, he's not going to remain the leading actor forever. (Going into business) will mean he'd have a stable income if he should retire from acting.' Ms Oh, 41, added that she finds the food at Gorilla In The Kitchen good enough to warrant a second visit.
She paid about $60 for a dinner set when she visited last December. 'I'd go there again for two reasons. First, because it's opened by Bae Yong Joon, and second, because the food is good and reasonably priced.
'It's healthy, in that there's no fat and no fried stuff, but is still quite delicious.'
Source: The Electric New Paper
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/show/story/0,4136,167011,00.html
