"No Exceptions for Offices" Nationwide Wave of Closures in Seoul, Busan, and Beyond... Demolition Companies Booming

Demolition Company Sees Unexpected Boom Due to COVID... Working Without Holidays

On the 8th, as the spread of COVID-19 continues, a clothing wholesale market in Dongdaemun, Seoul, is deserted. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee]"Following restaurants, we are also receiving many inquiries about office demolitions. So many places are closing down that there is nowhere to sell fixtures like refrigerators and large printers."

On the 21st, Kim (42), who runs a demolition company in Jongno-gu, Seoul, said he has recently been experiencing an unexpected boom due to COVID-19. The number of consultations has increased recently, so he has been working on-site without taking days off, even on holidays. Kim stated, "Most of the closure targets around Jongno are stores operated by self-employed individuals," adding, "Cafes and restaurants with significantly decreased sales make up the majority." He continued, "Self-employed people want to sell even dishes worth just 10,000 to 20,000 won, but since there is so much accumulated equipment, it is not easy to resell them."

Although social distancing measures have been partially eased from today, items pouring out from shops and offices that closed due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic are losing places to go. The daily demolition company Gangnam Center located in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, said, "There are consistently many demolition inquiries for restaurants and cafes," and explained, "Recently, demolition costs ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of won are not trivial, so many cases simply do not proceed with demolition." Dokkaebi Resources, a waste specialist located in Busan, said, "Following restaurants, we are also conducting many demolitions of small and medium-sized enterprises' offices," adding, "This month alone, we have been receiving more than 10 demolition inquiries steadily."

According to the '2021 Performance and 2022 Outlook Survey of Self-Employed' conducted by the Federation of Korean Industries in January with 500 self-employed respondents, 4 out of 10 self-employed people (40.8%) are considering closing their businesses. According to the Small Enterprise and Market Service, the number of subsidy applications last year totaled 22,749, which is a 250% increase compared to 6,503 in 2019. Business closure consulting also increased by 2,222 cases to 12,745 cases compared to 10,523 in 2019.

As business closures and demolitions become established as a business, selecting a company has also become important. Lee (45), who runs a restaurant in Mapo-gu, Seoul, said, "I am planning to demolish a small restaurant," adding, "I want to be introduced to a trustworthy company because there are cases where construction is stopped midway and additional costs are demanded."

Jo (31), who operates a clothing store in Cheonan, also said, "Even for kitchen demolition alone, the price difference between companies was very large, ranging from 700,000 won to 2,000,000 won," adding, "Since the closure demolition business has a low entry barrier, new companies seem to be emerging frequently."

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