Establishing a Separate Legal Foundation to Foster the Cosmetics Industry On August 20, 2026, the South Korean National Assembly passed the enactment bill for the “Cosmetics Industry Promotion and Support …
J. Haan
J. Haan
I'm J. Haan, the writer and editor behind KoreaUpClose. I live in Korea and report each story with local sources and on-the-ground context — not just trend recaps.
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Skincare & Beauty Products
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K-Drama & Screen
Global Success of ‘This Damn Love’ Continues Despite Pro-Japanese Controversy Surrounding Ha-young’s Great-Grandfather
by J. Haanby J. HaanTopping Netflix’s Non-English TV Series Chart The Netflix original romantic comedy This Damn Love, starring Jung Hae-in and Ha-young, continues its global winning streak even amidst the controversy surrounding its …
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Daily Life & Society
Office Workers Heading to the Cafeteria: Why Korean Consumer Sentiment Dipped for the First Time in Four Months
by J. Haanby J. HaanCutting Back on Lunch and Summer Vacations First Choi, a 33-year-old office worker in Yeouido, Seoul, finds himself eating lunch at the company cafeteria more often these days rather than …
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Webtoons & Story Content
Naver Webtoon Collaborates with Interpol to Shut Down 3 North African Piracy Sites
by J. Haanby J. HaanInternational Collaboration Leads to Arrests On August 13, 2026, Naver Webtoon announced the shutdown of three global, English-language illegal webtoon and comic distribution sites, along with the arrest of their …
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K-pop & Fandom
An Idol Union Reduced to Two: The ‘Broadcast Wall’ Higher Than Contracts
by J. Haanby J. HaanAn Attempt That Started at the National Assembly and Stalled at the Seongnam Branch On September 30, 2024, Bang Min-soo, formerly known as C.A.P from the group Teen Top, attended …
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Gaming & Esports
Gen.G Clinches 1st Place in LCK Regular Season on Head-to-Head Record… Play-In Stage Begins
by J. Haanby J. HaanTied at 19-7, Head-to-Head Record Decides the Top Spot Gen.G Esports has wrapped up the 2026 League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) regular season in first place. Both Gen.G and …
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Neighborhood Guides
Global Flagships Converge on Hannam-dong… The Center of Gravity in Fashion Retail Has Shifted
by J. Haanby J. HaanThe New Face of Massimo Dutti Opens on Itaewon-ro At the newly opened Massimo Dutti store at 266 Itaewon-ro in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, you’ll find a scene quite different from your …
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Travel & K-Content Tourism
Korea Welcomes a Record 2.09 Million Visitors in July, with Taiwan Leading the Growth
by J. Haanby J. Haan2.09 Million Visitors in July, a New Monthly Record Foreign tourists visiting Korea in July 2026 hit a record monthly high of 2,093,223. According to the ‘July 2026 Korea Tourism …
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Fashion
SATUR Rides an 83% Sales Surge to Launch Its Fall Collection in Five Asian Countries at Once
by J. Haanby J. HaanA Fall Collection Arriving Simultaneously in Five Countries Contemporary fashion brand SATUR officially launched its Fall 2026 collection across South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, China, and Thailand on August 21, 2026. …
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Language & Literature
Korean Literature’s Overseas Sales Hit a Record 3.58 Million Copies in Five Years, Led by Han Kang’s ‘We Do Not Part’
by J. Haanby J. Haan3.58 Million Copies Sold Across 40 Languages According to statistics released by the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea) on July 28, 2026, Korean literary works sold a cumulative …
