ULSAN — Hyundai Motor (005380) and its labor union will expand their traditional market shopping event to four times a year from once a year during the Chuseok holiday, in a bid to support neighborhood businesses in the region.
The company and the union held a market shopping event at Yeompo Market in Ulsan's Buk-gu district on the 20th and handed over 10 million won (about $7,200) in social contribution funds to the Ulsan Volunteer Center and the Community Chest of Korea's Ulsan branch.
Half of the donation, 5 million won, will go toward buying daily necessities for vulnerable households, and the other 5 million won will support cultural events at Yeompo Market. The aim is to draw more visitors to the traditional market while helping disadvantaged residents in the area. About 20 participants from the company, the union and the local government used traditional market gift certificates to buy sesame oil, rice cakes, fruit and other farm and livestock products.
The event was organized as part of the Ulsan Win-Win Market Project, a joint initiative of the Ulsan regional shared-growth council launched in July this year. The project is a community contribution program that matches local companies with traditional markets on a one-to-one basis under a "one company, one traditional market" approach. The visit was the second under the project, following a trip to Hogye Market in Buk-gu during the last Chuseok holiday.
"In connection with the Ulsan Win-Win Market Project, we have made the shopping event a regular fixture so that we can bring energy to traditional markets not only during peak holiday periods but also in the off-season," a Hyundai Motor official said. "We will continue win-win activities that broaden the consumer base of traditional markets and provide daily necessities to vulnerable groups."