The World On arirang

Hallyu, the Korean wave is spreading to all corners of the world thanks to PSY's "Gangnam Style" and the iconic group BTS. But before the international community rode the Korean wave, there was a man who worked diligently to promote Korea to foreigners. It's CEO Kim Hyung-geun who runs a bookstore called Seoul Selection for foreigners. This bookstore has been across the Gyeongbokgung Palace for 18 years and it's a place most frequented by foreign visitors. There are about 1,500 English books related to Korea and it's a special place which triggers the interest of foreign visitors with its vast array of magazines and memorabilia. Seoul Selection is famous as a bookstore but also a publishing company. Until now, Seoul Selection has published 150 books related to the Korean culture and history. Plus, one of its books received an award from the Independent Publisher Book Awards in the United States. Seoul Selection receives a lot of interest from overseas. CEO Kim Hyung-geun pioneered a new path to promote Korea to the world through books. On today's Heart-to-Heart, we will learn more about Kim Hyung-geun's past, present and the future.