BTS-mania boon for businesses as well as band

방탄소년단 신드롬, 기업들에도 청신호?

K-pop band BTS are taking a well-deserved break following their huge, sell-out tour of Europe and the United States.
While the guys can take a little while to recharge their batteries, there's one thing that never stops: the band's ability to churn out huge profits for themselves and the companies they put their names and faces to.
Seo Eun-kyung reports on how BTS-mania is a major boon for businesses as well as the band.

2018 has been the biggest year yet for BTS, who've won international acclaim.

But their influence is not limited to the music industry.
BTS has proved extremely valuable to numerous companies, which are enjoying a sales bonanza thanks to BTS-themed products.

One of Asia's most popular messenger apps has a bunch of BTS-themed characters called BT21, which were inspired by the band members' drawings of themselves and by their personality traits.

Right away, the characters were a huge hit at home and abroad.
Stores in Seoul that sell BT21 products are packed with people from all over the world.

"We just came by to see characters created by BTS. I really like KOALA, KOYA."

When BT21 products first went on sale overseas, the flagship store in New York got more than 30-thousand visitors and the one in Harajuku got more than 15-thousand on opening day alone.

The characters' popularity prompted Facebook to add BT21 emojis and AR effects to its Messenger service, where they got a staggering 800-thousand views in just one day.

"The K-pop group is also the face of a range of cosmetics as companies hope the boyband's popularity boosts their sales."

An up-and-coming Korean cosmetics brand has been working with BTS for two years now.
Last year, the company released a BTS-themed collagen foundation and a toothbrush... which drew huge crowds to their stores in Japan.

And this month, they introduced 47 new products featuring BT21 characters and saw sales go through the roof.

"BTS fans in their 20s and early 30s visit our stores a lot."

Despite the economic windfall BTS has brought these companies, there are risks for the band.

"Selling products based on certain artists brings big profits in the short term, but oversaturation and overexposure can damage the artists' long-term appeal to fans."

But for now fans can't get enough and the BTS effect is going strong.
Seo Eun-kyung, Arirang News.

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