Seocho-gu Free Umbrella Repair Center: The Secret Behind Repairing Over 150,000 Umbrellas in 17 Years?

Providing Jobs to Low-Income Vulnerable Groups and Creating a Foundation for Self-Sufficiency and Independence Along with Environmental Protection, Community-Based Resident Services, and Sharing Through Donations

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Seocho-gu (Mayor Jo Eun-hee) operates an ‘Umbrella Repair Center’ that repairs broken umbrellas for free during the extended rainy season in summer, receiving great responses from residents.

The ‘Seocho-gu Free Umbrella Repair Center’ is located on the basement first floor of the Seocho-gu Yangjae Comprehensive Welfare Center and has been operating for about 17 years since it first started nationwide in 2003.

From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, umbrella repair specialists fix bent or broken umbrella ribs, broken locking mechanisms, and other damaged parts free of charge.

So far, over 150,000 umbrellas have been repaired, and with strong support from residents every year, an average of about 730 broken umbrellas are reborn as new ones each month.

Especially during the summer rainy season like now, about 1,000 umbrellas are repaired monthly, making it very popular among residents.

In particular, this year the district expanded the ‘Umbrella Repair Project’ into a ‘part-time self-support work project,’ creating more jobs and simultaneously introducing the concept of ‘part-time work’ for low-income groups who find it difficult to participate in full-day jobs for the first time.

Originally, two people participated as part of a public work project, but this year, as the only public interest job project of the Seocho Self-Support Center, it provides jobs to a total of six low-income vulnerable groups.

Also, for workers in vulnerable groups who usually want to participate in jobs but find full-day work difficult due to caregiving, nursing, health, and other reasons, flexible working hours allowing part-time work are provided to offer job participation opportunities.

The ‘Free Umbrella Repair Center’ had been closed due to COVID-19 but resumed operations in July. During that time, the center conducted specialized repair training and customer service education to train professional technicians and strengthen its foundation.

Currently, during the rainy season, the center provides convenience to residents by repairing umbrellas that are easily broken for free, and furthermore, it leads environmental preservation by receiving donated umbrellas that would otherwise be discarded and recycling them as parts for umbrella repairs.

Jo Eun-hee, Mayor of Seocho-gu, stated, “The Seocho free umbrella repair project, now in its 17th year, is a beneficial project that leads both job creation and environmental protection. We will continue to discover practical policies that residents can feel in their daily lives.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.