Myeongdong in South Korea is known as the "ghost business circle". What is the reason for this name?

As we all know, Myeongdong in South Korea has always been called a shopping paradise by tourists from all over the world. Myeongdong is also a must-see place for Korean tourism and shopping. The goods here are mainly high-end and mid-range, so it's quite easy to go shopping. Of course, I'm talking about Myeongdong before this year. Now you have it next winter? Ghost business circle? The name, once you go to Myeongdong now, is definitely a capitalized face. Where is this place? Myeongdong? Yes, the Ming Dong is vast and sparsely populated, and the shops are empty. Just like the ghost old street, it has long lost its former glory.

Then, the main reason why the once bustling Myeongdong has become so miserable today is that it has been affected by the epidemic. As we all know, the COVID-19 epidemic swept the world this year. It can be said that the whole world is fighting the epidemic, and it is a shopping kingdom that relies on the purchasing power of tourists to lay the economic foundation. South Korea, this epidemic has dealt a huge blow to its economy, and Myeongdong in South Korea is one of the representatives. Due to the epidemic, in less than a year, about 30% of the shops on the main street of Myeongdong were in an empty nest state, and there were basically no tourists except scattered pedestrians and office workers.

Affected by the epidemic this year, global tourists' travel has been restrained, so the visit rate of Korean tourists has dropped rapidly, and the passenger flow has dropped by more than 90% on the original basis. Many merchants said that this year's sales were less than 30% of last year's, plus store rent, employee salary expenses and normal wear and tear of daily stores, which were enough to make stores make ends meet. For this reason, even if the relevant Korean government encourages rent reduction and adheres to such a policy, many businesses find that with the extension of the epidemic date, even if the rent is reduced by half, it can not support the daily opening consumption and can only accept the ending of closing the store.

Judging from the epidemic situation, most of the economic situation in South Korea has declined, which shows that the situation in Myeongdong is not accidental, but inevitable.