Lee Young-hye: The secret to building a 48 billion won magazine empire from a 47,000 won salary

[EBS Seo Jang-hoon's Millionaire Next Door]

The original 'Lovehouse' creator Lee Young-hye, the one who discovered 'Culinary Class Wars' star Venerable Seonjae?! "You don't even have to worry about clothes or hair" — 26 years of explosive chemistry!

- The Queen of Magazines, Lee Young-hye, who grew from a '47,000 won salary to 48 billion won in annual sales, reveals her wealth that surprised Seo Jang-hoon, including a 'double Han River view' residence, a 400-pyeong office building, and a Hanok villa. - "I acquired a magazine company with 100 million won in marriage funds..." A 27-year-old female CEO facing a 'bolt from the blue' forced closure after only 6 months?! "It was so unfair, I wrote a letter to the President."

On 'Seo Jang-hoon's Millionaire Next Door,' the show met Lee Young-hye, the 'Queen of Magazines' who acquired a magazine company on the verge of closing and grew it into a publishing house with 48 billion won in annual sales. Her journey of challenge and success, which has led the trends of the era and South Korean residential culture for 50 years, provided a deep resonance.

In the episode of EBS 'Seo Jang-hoon's Millionaire Next Door' broadcast on the 16th, Lee Young-hye, a pioneer in the magazine industry who achieved 48 billion won in annual sales, appeared. Lee Young-hye is a figure who wrote the history of the magazine industry by creating South Korea's first home interior magazine, changing Korean residential culture, and subsequently introducing magazines tailored to the trends of the times, including wedding, childcare, men's, and luxury magazines. On this day, Seo Jang-hoon and Jang Ye-won visited Lee Young-hye's home in Hannam-dong to look into her unrivaled sense and spatial philosophy. In the entrance, which applies the Four Pillars of Destiny, a dog doll was placed for 'intense male energy,' and as a magazine company CEO, she placed her favorite piece of furniture, a desk, in the middle of the living room. In particular, the special 'double Han River view,' which allows one to view both the east and south sides of the Han River from a single house, drew admiration. The 'Ottchil' (lacquerware), the core of Korean luxury that Lee Young-hye is investing in, also caught the eye. Including a 100 million won table coated entirely in lacquer, she completed her own aesthetic by utilizing lacquer in the kitchen and various tableware. Her 4-building, 400-pyeong office building built by the famous architect Seung H-Sang was also revealed. Seo Jang-hoon and Jang Ye-won could not hide their surprise at the unique exterior and the sensible interior that looked like a scene from a drama.

Lee Young-hye first encountered magazines when she joined a design-specialized magazine company that first appeared in Korea in 1976 under the condition of a 47,000 won salary. She learned the basics of magazine publishing by handling everything from cleaning to printing, writing, editing, and reporting. However, the company could not hold out for long and fell into management difficulties, so Lee Young-hye acquired a magazine company on the verge of closing at the age of 27 using 100 million won in marriage funds she received in advance from her mother. However, even after the acquisition, the situation did not improve easily. To make matters worse, she faced the misfortune of the magazine being forcibly closed due to the military's media consolidation after only 6 months. Pushed to the edge of a cliff, Lee Young-hye took a decisive gamble by writing a letter directly to the President, creating a dramatic reversal where the magazine was republished after 3 months. Afterwards, Lee Young-hye gave birth to the first home interior magazine in Korea. This magazine led the home decorating craze in South Korea and achieved a profit only 8 months after its launch. A radical event of selecting one house every month to decorate for free became the spark for success. Lee Young-hye shared the intense popularity of that time, saying, "So many application letters came in that we selected the winner in the presence of the police to ensure fairness." Seo Jang-hoon could not close his mouth, saying, "You implemented 'Lovehouse' through a magazine."

Lee Young-hye's extraordinary eye, which recognized the star chef of Netflix's 'Culinary Class Wars' Venerable Seonjae 26 years ago, also shone. At Lee Young-hye's recommendation, Venerable Seonjae's cookbook was published in 2000 when temple food was unfamiliar, and it became a bestseller, selling 7,000 copies in just one week. On this day, Lee Young-hye personally visited Venerable Seonjae and reminisced about their 26-year relationship while tasting Venerable Seonjae's summer delicacies, such as watermelon tea and shiitake mushroom cold noodles. The pleasant 'tiki-taka' between the two, who have been together for a long time, also brought laughter. When Lee Young-hye said, "I am envious that you don't have to worry about your hairstyle and clothes, monk," Venerable Seonjae appealed his unfairness, saying, "I do care about them too." Lee Young-hye's steps of sharing toward culture and art also drew attention. Lee Young-hye not only rents out her Hanok villa located in Bukchon, Seoul, as an exhibition space for young artists for free, but also shares the beauty of Hanok with more people through 'Open House' events. In 2006, she received praise for building the eco-friendly 'Paper Art Museum' with 5 billion won and providing free admission. Finally, Lee Young-hye expressed her wish to be remembered that way for a long time, saying, "A 'real rich person' is someone who is needed by others."

EBS 'Seo Jang-hoon's Millionaire Next Door' airs every Wednesday at 9:55 PM, and after the broadcast, it can also be watched on OTT platforms such as Netflix and Wavve.

End. (Photo provided = EBS 'Seo Jang-hoon's Millionaire Next Door')

◆ At a Glance

· Publishing Institution : EBS

· Category : Seo Jang-hoon's Millionaire Next Door

· Distribution : September 17

Source : EBS Press Release

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