Seoul City Free Interview Suit Rental 'Chwieopnalgae' Users Reach Record High... Expanded to 10 Locations

40,000 Users Last Year... 10 Times Increase Since 2016 Introduction, 160,000 Total Beneficiaries
This Year, Added Urban Areas with High Youth Demand Including Cheongdam and Hongdae to Existing 7 Locations

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Seoul City announced on the 3rd that the number of users of the ‘Employment Wings Service,’ which provides free rental of interview suits to young job seekers struggling with employment difficulties due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, reached an all-time high last year.

The annual number of users, which was 4,032 in the first year of the service introduction in 2016, increased nearly tenfold last year, with about 40,000 people using the service throughout the year. This represents a 26% increase compared to 2020. Over the past six years (2016?2021), more than 160,000 young job seekers have eased their financial burden of preparing interview attire.

Seoul City announced that it will expand the number of ‘Employment Wings Service’ locations from the current seven to a total of ten this year. Three additional locations will be added in high-demand areas for youth: downtown (Chungjeongno), Gangnam area (Cheongdam), and university district (Hongdae), to improve accessibility and convenience. The existing seven locations, reflecting the urgent requests of young people seeking employment, have advanced the usual February start date by one month, beginning the service on January 14. The three new locations will start operating from the 14th after a preparation period.

The ‘Employment Wings Service’ is available to any young person residing in Seoul aged from high school graduates to under 39 years old. They can rent interview suits, as well as ties, belts, shoes, and other accessories, free of charge for up to 10 times annually, each rental lasting 3 nights and 4 days.

Youth wishing to rent interview suits can select their preferred rental company on the Seoul Job Portal, reserve the date and time of their visit, and use the service by visiting at the reserved time. Upon visiting the reserved company, they can receive expert assistance to choose suits that fit their body shape and purpose.

Park Dae-woo, Director of Economic and Job Planning at Seoul City, said, “We hope the Employment Wings Service will provide some relief from the economic burden to young people struggling in the frozen job market,” adding, “We will continue to operate the service so that more young people can conveniently use it in the future.”

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