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Global City Observation The disappearing industrial hardware stores of Korean industry

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Meraj Rashid
Global City Observation The disappearing industrial hardware stores of Korean industry

In the city where you live, do you know where to buy a suitable screw? industrial hardware stores( ferreterías industriales)  may be the answer, but more and more industrial hardware stores are disappearing.


In Seoul, South Korea, Euljiro (Euljiro) is a concentration of hardware stores. From the street view, there are a series of dense and low buildings here, much like the urban villages in some cities in China. More than 10,000 stores sell circuit board wires, light tubes, chains, and gears of different specifications.


You can find discontinued electrical appliances and accessories here, and you can also order a mold on the spot-in addition to selling finished products, there are also a large number of handicraft workshops hidden here, and production can be completed in a few days or even a few hours. From raw materials to producers, there is a complete ecological chain here. Both the elderly and young geeks are regulars of Uljiro.

60-year-old Kim Hak-result runs a blacksmith's shop and has been selling all kinds of iron molds here since the 1950s. Like him, these handicraft workshops were the first to serve Samsung and LG.

In addition to electronic brands and chaebols, small producers like Jin Xueryu are the other side of South Korea's economic boom.


Unlike large producers who only accept large quantities of orders, Jin Xuelu believes that the value of this road is that it can be customized in small quantities. Recently, he accepted an interview with The Guardian. "On Uljiro, we can always deliver quickly, one or two days or a few hours. This will take at least a month or even longer in the United States or elsewhere."


"But in the eyes of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, these values are nothing at all." Uljiro and Kim Hakryul are facing the threat of being expelled. In October 2018, the Seoul Metropolitan Government passed a development plan to demolish all existing shops on Euljiro, replace them with office buildings and apartments, and connect them to the already developed Cheonggyecheon area.

Cheoncheon Stream is now one of the busiest social places in Seoul Visual China


"We are at a loss and don't know where we can go," said Jin Xuelu, whose business relies on the complete ecological chain of Uljiro. However, according to the current expropriation plan, each shopkeeper can only receive 4 months of financial compensation based on the previous revenue situation. In addition, they can only find their own way out.


City planner Park Eun-sun founded a private group called "Listen to the City" (Listen to the City), stationed in a restaurant on Euljiro. She told the "Guardian" the irrationality of the expropriation plan.

Most of the businesses in Euljiro are tenants, not landlords. According to South Korean law, developers can carry out demolition as long as more than three-quarters of the landlord’s consent is obtained. The tenants do not have enough right to speak for the demolition or retention of Uljiro.


In addition, most people use cash transactions, and the income shown on the books may be far lower than the actual situation. The government did not consider choosing a complete area for centralized resettlement. Households could only be scattered and scattered all over the city. "Considering machine noise and pollution, they may not be ideal neighbors."


"This is the oldest area in Seoul. Everything has grown since the Second World War. People work and live here and create their own history," Park Eun Sun said, saying that there is a "living history of the city."


According to the "Korea Times", the development of Eulji Road is a broader regional renewal. In 2003, the Cheonggyecheon area was first transformed, a section of the elevated road was demolished, and the covered river bank was restored. This water landscape has now become one of the busiest social places in Seoul.

The success of Cheonggyecheon has led to real estate development in the nearby area. The scope of regional renewal extends from Seoul City Hall to Dongdaemun Plaza, which was designed by the late well-known architect Zaha Hadid. Uljiro is within the scope of renewal.


The 75-year-old Lee Bae-Woong (Lee Bae-wrong) is the owner of industrial hardware stores( ferreterías industriales). He was previously interviewed by The Korea Times. He said that it would take at least three months to pack bolts of different specifications. Different accessories need to be packaged and arranged in different categories. Once they are mixed together, no one can re-screen, "it is tantamount to a pile of scrap copper and rotten iron."


A visual China map of a fire that hit the hardware store on Uljiro earlier

But they don't have so much time. According to a report in The Korea Times, many merchants have received threats of intimidation and various forms of violence.


At the end of January, an anti-gentrification organization called Cheonggyecheon protested on Uljiro. Young artists, designers, and some creators all joined the protest.

After many protests and demonstrations, Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon proposed to reconsider the renewal plan for this area. Currently, the development plan has not been canceled, and Park Won-soon said that he would invite the expert committee to consider

 

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Meraj Rashid
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