“I want to take a picture before I leave Korea.”
The Korean Pavilion in the Jamboree. Photos of the members who took impromptu photos filled the walls. There is a place where scouts from all over the country, including Seoul, go to experience Korean culture. It’s just a slice of life.
Companies and local governments that were to distribute and support the Jamboree members welcomed them with various Korea experience programs. One of them is to take instant photos. Members of the Jamboree who were touring major areas in Seoul, such as Hongik University, also drew attention by patronizing the Four Cuts Store on the street.
It is similar to the ‘sticker picture’ of old memories. These days, instant photos are gaining popularity again, especially among Generation Z. A typical example is LK Ventures’ Four Life Cuts. Beyond the fad, it has become an essential play culture for Generation Z. For Generation Z around the world who participated in the Jamboree, 4 Cuts of Life has become a unique Korean tourism product.
It is another surprise to the older generation who experienced the craze for ‘sticker photos’ in the 2000s. LK Ventures recorded 25 billion won in sales last year alone with ‘4 photos’. An initial public offering ( IPO ) is under way.
Life 4 Cuts is a service that literally takes 안전놀이터4 pictures on the spot. Life4Cut occupies more than 70% of the domestic instant photo market. About 2.3 million people visit each month, most of them Generation Z.
Performance is also on the rise. Sales last year doubled from the previous year to 25.4 billion won, and operating profit also tripled to 4.5 billion won from the previous year. LK Ventures aims to promote an IPO next year based on this year’s growth.
Lee Ho-ik, CEO of LK Ventures, is the owner of a failed history of promoting various vending machine businesses in the past. However, he established LK Ventures as a service with a concept of combining vending machines and photos, and started opening Life 4 Cut stores in 2018. Since then, more than 400 Life 4 Cut stores are currently in operation nationwide. Recently, ‘Photo Drink’, which incorporates the concept of a celebrity pictorial, is also in operation.
It is not only the young people in Korea who take pictures as a form of entertainment. Recently, the photography culture in Korea has become a big concern for foreigners visiting Korea.
According to Creatrip, a comprehensive service provider for tourists visiting Korea, out of a total of 945,212 searches for Creatrip in the first half of this year, the product with the largest increase in search volume was ‘Photoshop’, followed by Hanbok. Both Taiwan and English-speaking countries ranked first and second in search volume growth.
This means that when you travel to Korea, you are not looking for Namsan Mountain or Gyeongbokgung Palace, but now you are looking for a photo studio. Creatrip explained, “Korea’s photography technology has become a famous experience product with excellent shooting and editing technology.”
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