Hong Seok-cheon "Store rent 9.35 million won... Temporary closure due to COVID-19 impact"

Photo by Hong Seokcheon Instagram

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Seul-gi] Broadcaster Hong Seok-cheon announced that he will "temporarily close his restaurant" due to the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

On the 16th, Hong Seok-cheon wrote on his Instagram, "It has been about 12 years since I opened My Chelsea in Itaewon, and it has been operating without a single day off. Due to COVID-19, we have been temporarily closed since last week," he said.

Hong Seok-cheon said, "I am in tears. The monthly rent is about 9.35 million won. Since we are closing and taking a break anyway, a sudden idea came to me. If there are passionate people with good content who want to use this space, please contact me," adding, "We could have fun together. It could be food-related, a flea market, YouTube filming, or even distributing local specialties in connection with local governments."

He continued, "When the economy is this bad, we need to gather ideas and passion to help each other find solutions. Let's start anew. We cannot just sit still and collapse because of COVID-19," and sent a message of encouragement, saying, "Daegu and Gyeongbuk, fighting! All self-employed people, stay strong. Small, medium, and large companies, stay strong, and all those working hard on quarantine, cheer up. Let's go, Republic of Korea!"

Earlier, on the 27th of last month, Hong Seok-cheon posted on his Instagram, "Thursday night at 8:30 PM. Not a single table of customers," and said, "It has been over 10 years since I opened the restaurant, but this is the first time. I feel like I did something terribly wrong. Let's stay strong, self-employed people," offering words of support.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.