"Make hay while the sun shines"... Mr. Seukapeurio opens an online store, drawing crowds and sparking a sellout frenzy

Opened a Smart Store amid crowds at his shop and requests for online sales
About 110,000 visitors by the morning of the 12th... Restock inquiries continue

The scarves sold by the “Namdaemun Scarf Man,” who became famous for talking customers out of purchases by calling them “overspending,” have also sold out online. He opened a Naver Smart Store in response to crowds at his shop and numerous requests to buy online, but consumers unable to find the items continued asking when they would be restocked.

A merchant who became famous as the "Namdaemun Scarf Man." Screenshot from SBS's Masters of Living.

As of 1:15 p.m. on the 12th, about 132,000 people had visited the Naver Smart Store run by Mr. A, who operates the general merchandise shop Hanyangsa at Namdaemun Market in Jung-gu, Seoul. The store had a cumulative total of about 200,000 visitors.

The item for sale is a 10,000-won set of six scarves. Rather than letting buyers choose the designs themselves, the owner selects six scarves from among several products and sends them to the buyer. The product page also says, “Absolutely no overspending.”

A sold-out notice is displayed on the online store opened by the "Namdaemun Scarf Man." Shipping (3,000 won) is extra. Screenshot of Naver Smart Store.

Mr. A had earlier announced on the social media account “Namdaemun Dadaguri,” “The offline store is too crowded and there are too many requests to buy online, so I’m opening a Smart Store in a hurry.” However, visitors also flocked to the online store, which was temporarily difficult to access, and the items sold out in no time.

Messages waiting for sales to resume and words of support poured into the inquiry board, including, “I saw the video and there were so many people that I didn’t dare go to the market, but now the online store is open,” “Great news for those of us outside Seoul,” “Please restock soon,” and “I kept refreshing and finally managed to buy one.” Some users also imitated Mr. A’s distinctive way of speaking, asking for a restock with comments like, “I want to buy those crappy scarves already.”

Mr. A also shared a screen showing that he could not access the Smart Store on social media and responded, “What on earth is going on?” He later announced that he would hold a livestream to explain the sellout and how he planned to respond.

The shop is packed with visitors who came to see “Scarf Uncle.” Screenshot from YouTube @Moon Ahjessi.

He became known nationwide for his unrestrained banter with customers. Videos spread on social media of him scolding customers choosing scarves, saying, “You’re overspending right now. Even if you buy them, you won’t wear them when you get home,” or telling them, “Don’t buy it,” when he thought an item did not suit them. His tendency to discourage purchases rather than push sales drew attention, earning him nicknames such as “Seukapeurio” and “Namdaemun Lim Young-woong.”

In addition to customers looking to buy merchandise, visitors also crowded into the shop to meet Mr. A in person and take photos with him. The crowds made it difficult to pass through the narrow alley and affected business at nearby shops, raising safety concerns.

The shop, which had temporarily closed on October 31, resumed business on November 4, but crowds gathered again and police were called to the scene. The following day, November 5, it closed again for a safety inspection. Mr. A later hired security personnel at his own expense to manage the crowds and maintain safety at the site.

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