Yongin City "Meet Joayong Goods Now at Offline Retail Store"

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hun Reporter] The Joayong character goods that have been beloved by Yongin citizens can now be purchased at offline stores.

The city opened 'Joayongin Store,' a Joayong goods retail shop, near the social economy promotion hall inside the interchange center of Giheung Station on the Yongin Light Rail Transit on the 4th.

The Seowon Foundation, established by Seowon Compressor (Co.) CEO Park Jong-ok, donated 10 million won for store interior costs, expressing a desire to contribute to meaningful projects that help low-income people achieve self-reliance.

Store operations are managed by the Yongin Community Self-Reliance Center, which assists low-income people with self-reliance and job creation/entrepreneurship. Revenue from goods sales will be reinvested in self-reliance programs for low-income residents.

The store sells 20 types of goods featuring the Joayong character, including eco bags (2 types), cotton pouches (2 types), key ring figurines, mugs, t-shirts, and stationery items such as masking tape, memo pads, postcards, and pens, priced from 500 won to 15,000 won.

The store operates from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays.

Joayong is a 'dragon' character that symbolizes Yongin City. With its cute and familiar image, it has received great love from citizens. Whenever SNS event emoticons or goods are released, they sell out almost immediately due to its popularity.

Riding on this popularity, it received the grand prize in the regional category at the 4th Our Neighborhood Character Awards held by the Korean Creative Content Agency in September last year.

In response to rising demand for Joayong goods, the city registered Joayong as an official symbol of the city and signed a character usage approval agreement with the Yongin Community Self-Reliance Center.

The city expects that through the opening of the retail store, it can more actively promote Joayong, the city's official character, while creating synergistic effects such as job creation and support for self-reliance among low-income people.

As an opening celebration event for 'Joayongin Store,' the city will give popcorn in reusable containers to the first 100 people on the day. For 500 people who leave reviews or verify their purchase through Instagram hashtags from Naver Store receipts, the city will provide one Joayong mask.

Customers who purchase products will have the opportunity to buy cotton shopping bags, normally sold at 3,000 won, for 2,000 won.

At the opening ceremony on the day, 30 people attended, including Mayor Baek Gun-gi of Yongin City, Kim Jung-yeon, Chairman of the Yongin YMCA, and officials from the Yongin Community Self-Reliance Center.

Mayor Baek said, "With the opening of the retail store, we expect it to be a good opportunity for the official city character 'Joayong' to receive love from more people and to create a new milestone in self-reliance projects that support the self-reliance of low-income people."

Meanwhile, the Yongin Community Self-Reliance Center has been conducting 'self-reliance work projects' in 15 fields including logistics delivery, free nursing care, convenience stores, and food service businesses since 2001 to support job creation and entrepreneurship for low-income people and help them achieve self-reliance.