South Korean Wedding Companies Woo Rich Chinese

 \　　A growing number of Chinese couples are choosing to go to South Korea for their wedding photo shoot.

 

　　CRI's Lucy Du explains.

 

　　The bride sits patiently as her makeup¹ is applied² and her tiara fixed³ in place.

 

　　After choosing the South Korean company to shoot their pre-wedding photo online, Yang Candi and her fiance have travelled to Seoul from their home in China.

 

　　"In China, the photo shoots are more likely to be in traditional Chinese style or European style. Compared to those, South Korean photo studios are very simple and express their own stories. So it was unique."

 

　　These photo shoots are big business for South Korea's 15-billion US dollar wedding industry.

 

　　It's also a sign of the rising purchasing power of Chinese people, whose exposure to South Korean pop culture brings them to Seoul with high expectations.

 

　　The service normally costs between 2 to 4-thousand dollars US.

 

　　Lee Su-sun is Deputy Director of Partner Relationship Management at "iWedding", a prominent South Korean wedding planner hosting Chinese tourists.

 

　　"Our Chinese customers coming to Seoul total around 40 to 50 couples per month, and those going to Jeju island total 20 to 30 couples per month on average."

 

　　He adds that strict Chinese visa regulations means that normally only the elite⁴ can afford to travel.

 

　　Song Sung-uk, professor of South Korean pop culture studies at the Catholic University of Korea says this is an economic effect that has - in part - been generated through South Korean soap operas.

 

　　"I think self-empathy and envy of Chinese people towards a wedding or a romantic relationship that appeared in South Korean soap operas, leading to a very happy family, naturally led to wedding photo shoots in South Korea. This is an economic effect on tourism that South Korean soap operas have created."

 

　　South Korean wedding planners cater⁵ primarily to domestic couples.

 

　　But there are some companies, such as iWedding, which are hoping to further tap the Chinese market.

 

　　South Korea's tourism ministry⁶ estimates more than 2.5 million Chinese tourists spent an average of 21-hundred-50 US dollars per person, per trip to South Korea last year, which is more than any other nationality.

 

　　For CRI, this is Lucy.

1 makeup   

n.组织；性格；化装品

参考例句：

• Those who failed the exam take a makeup exam.这次考试不及格的人必须参加补考。
• Do you think her beauty could makeup for her stupidity?你认为她的美丽能弥补她的愚蠢吗？

2 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

3 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

4 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

5 cater   

vi.(for/to)满足，迎合；(for)提供饮食及服务

参考例句：

• I expect he will be able to cater for your particular needs.我预计他能满足你的特殊需要。
• Most schools cater for children of different abilities.大多数学校能够满足具有不同天资的儿童的需要。

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。