Dispatch has revealed how HOOK Entertainment CEO Kwon Jin Young lived a life of luxury while Lee Seung Gi wasn’t being paid for any of his music.
In another exclusive report, Dispatch has obtained financial documents showcasing how Kwon Jin Young has been living a life full of vacations, high-end dining, and luxury goods, all the while not bothering to pay Lee Seung Gi for any of his music. Kwon Jin Young even became a VVVVIP of Louis Vuitton’s store in Cheongdam-dong. For example, on December 16, 2020, Kwon Jin Young ordered Gamjatang (pork back-bone stew) to Louis Vuitton’s third floor lounge.
Kwon Jin Young: Go to Seongsu Gamjatang and get a medium size order to-go. I asked for the broth to be packaged separately.
Manager: I am in charge of a drama schedule, I have told another manager.
Kwon Jin Young: Ok.
Manager: CEO, should I have the other manager drop it off at Louis Vuitton afterwards? Or should I have it sent to the office?
Kwon Jin Young: Yes, after it’s packed.
Manager: Understood. I’ll have him go straight to Louis Vuitton.
Kwon Jin Young enjoyed her Gamjatang (pork back-bone stew) at the third floor lounge of Louis Vuitton’s Cheongdam-dong store. At the store, Kwon Jin Young is a VVVVIP. She and her friends went shopping, ate, and chatted in the lounge on the third floor. But how did she take control of the Louis Vuitton store in question?
The secret is Hook Entertainment’s company card. Kwon Jin Young’s company card credit limit is ₩80.0 million KRW (about $60,300 USD) per month. For comparison, Lee Seung Gi’s team’s company card limit is a mere ₩2.00 million KRW (about $1,510 USD) per month, 40 times less than Kwon Jin Young’s.
Dispatch was able to obtain financial records detailing Kwon Jin Young’s use of the company card. From January 2016 to July 2022, she spent around ₩2.80 billion KRW (about $2.11 million USD). She also earned ₩2.60 billion KRW (about $1.96 million USD) in salary during that time. Kwon Jin Young even registered her younger sibling as a fake employee and provided them with ₩400 million KRW (about $302,000 USD). She gave her mother a credit card with a credit limit of ₩5.00 million KRW (about $3,770 USD) per month — more than Lee Seung Gi’s team. She even gave a company card with a ₩10.0 million KRW (about $7,540 USD) per month limit to an employee of the Louis Vuitton shop she frequented.
Kwon Jin Young’s life of luxury
On January 1, 2016, the Hook Entertainment “family” posted a picture celebrating the new year in Japan. Director B posted a picture of themselves eating buckwheat noodles at the Andaz Hotel in Tokyo, praying for the upcoming year to go well.
Kwon Jin Young paid for this entire trip using the company card. The fee charged to the company card for this vacation was ₩11.0 million KRW (about $8,300 USD). In 2016, Kwon Jin Young’s hotel costs were over ₩24.0 million KRW (about $18,100 USD), and they were all charged to the company card. Over the seven years of financial records Dispatch went through, Kwon Jin Young spent over ₩200 million KRW (about $151,000 USD) on hotel accomodations. Some of the trips may have truly been business trips, but many more were personal travel that was still charged to the company and paid for using the company’s money, not her own.
Better than your Louis Vuitton
She’s the customer that spends the most at this Louis Vuitton store.
— Store official
Gamjatang? I’ve even seen them have jjajangmyun (black bean noodles) delivered to the store.
— Fashion industry official
Kwon Jin Young is the VVVVIP of Louis Vuitton. She has the power to order whatever she wants to the third floor lounge. But the biggest contributor is her use of the company card.
Dispatch has confirmed that between 2020 and 2022, the corporate card was used to pay for ₩270 million KRW (about $204,000 USD) in high end designer products. Kwon Jin Young purchased items from the Cheongdam-dong Louis Vuitton store 48 separate times. However, she does not only purchase from Louis Vuitton, but also Hermes, Chanel, Prada, Dior, Gucci, Burberry, and Fendi — all the luxury brands.
Over the six years of financial documents Dispatch was able to obtain, it was calculated that Kwon Jin Young spent around ₩1.84 billion KRW (about $1.39 million USD) on luxury goods. However, she was not the only user of the company card, as a Hook Entertainment director was also adding charges to the card.
On February 27, 2019, there was a conversation between Kwon Jin Young and one of Lee Seung Gi’s managers.
Manager: Lee Seung Gi had a sandwich and coffee for dinner, the cost was ₩27,000 KRW (about $20.40 USD).
Manager: Arrived at the office. After cleaning the van, I will clock out of work.
Kwon Jin Young: If it’s before or after work, he has to use his personal card!
Manager: Understood.
At the same time Kwon Jin Young sent the message, her best friend “D” spent ₩1.87 million KRW (about $1,410 USD) at a high-end spa in Cheongdam-dong. “D” is one of Kwon Jin Young’s friends from high school and served as an auditor for the company. “D’s” salary was paid through the company card.
Another instance on August 16, 2019 went as follows:
Manager: Lee Seung Gi asked for some snacks and energy bars at SSG, the cost was ₩29,800 KRW (about $22.50 USD).
Kwon Jin Young: If it’s a personal request, use your personal card!
However, just five days before, Kwon Jin Young’s mother charged ₩178,000 KRW (about $134 USD) to the company card after eating at a beef shortrib restaurant in Anseong. Kwon Jin Young would criticize any food purchases that would feed Lee Seung Gi, but on the other hand, she spent a total of ₩172 million KRW (about $130,000 USD) over a span of 1,129 meals (an average of ₩152,000 KRW (about $115 USD) per meal) and another ₩42.0 million KRW (about $31,700 USD) spread through 690 purchases (average ₩60,900 KRW (about $45.90 USD) per purchase) on daily necessities.
Some of her restaurant purchases are shown below:
The key point in this comparison is Lee Seung Gi’s contract. The contract that was signed agreed that Lee Seung Gi would receive 70% of the profits and Hook Entertainment would receive 30%, on the condition that Hook Entertainment pays for Lee Seung Gi’s expenses. If Hook Entertainment could get Lee Seung Gi to pay for his own expenses while he was “not working” or his “personal expenses”, the company would then save money.
Just how much money did Kwon Jin Young spend on the company card?
Kwon Jin Young’s hobbies include travelling, shopping, and eating. She also dabbled a little into “cyber money”, which is defined as either cryptocurrency or virtual game money. It is unknown where the total of ₩2.47 million KRW (about $1,860 USD) spent on cyber money went to. Kwon Jin Young also bought gold with the company card, which may have been illegal. If she purchased the gold with the company card and kept it for herself, that is considered embezzlement. If she gave it away to broadcast officials or others in the industry, that would violate the Kim Young Ran Act on bribery. She did make a few donations, namely donating ₩235,000 KRW (about $177 USD) per month to the Children’s Foundation.
Kwon Jin Young’s company card expenditure breakdown
Luxury Goods: ₩1.84 billion KRW (about $1.39 million USD)
Airfare: ₩137 million KRW (about $104,000 USD)
Hotel/Lodging: ₩203 million KRW (about $153,000 USD)
Food: ₩173 million KRW (about $130,000 USD)
Hospital: ₩42.3 million KRW (about $31,900 USD)
Shopping: ₩42.9 million KRW (about $32,300 USD)
Internet Shopping: ₩27.9 million KRW (about $21,000 USD)
Beauty/Salon: ₩20.6 million KRW (about $15,600 USD)
Hangame: ₩2.48 million KRW (about $1,870 USD)
Gold: ₩8.93 million KRW (about $6,740 USD)
Donations: ₩3.06 million KRW (about $2,310 USD)
Total: ₩2.82 billion KRW (about $2.13 million USD)
The DNA in Kwon Jin Young’s family and Mr. A
On June 9, 2021, Kwon Jin Young posted a picture of herself visiting her father’s grave. She mentioned how she has a filial DNA because of her father, and how filial piety is more important than money. Kwon Jin Young has described Lee Seung Gi as family in the past, but he was part of her fake family. Kwon Jin Young shared generously with her real family.
First of all, she hired her younger brother as a Hook Entertainment employee in 2014 with a starting salary of ₩44.0 million KRW (about $33,200 USD). In 2021, his salary was ₩71.0 million KRW (about $53,600 USD). A total of ₩456 million KRW (about $344,000 USD) was paid to him. After 2021, he left the company in order to diminish the chances of any suspicions ahead of Hook Entertainment’s acquisition by Chorokbaem Media. His severance payment totaled ₩64.0 million KRW (about $48,300 USD).
Kwon Jin Young gave her mother a company card worth around ₩5.00 million KRW (about $3,770 USD) per month. The total costs charged onto the card by her mother added up to ₩103 million KRW (about $77,700 USD), which was used on stores, hospitals, gas stations, restaurants, beauty salons, and laundry services.
Kwon Jin Young even gave a company card to a Louis Vuitton employee “A” with a monthly limit of ₩10.0 million KRW (about $7,540 USD), which was the second highest limit on a Hook Entertainment company card, second to Kwon Jin Young herself. This was five times more than Lee Seung Gi’s team company card, which was ₩2.00 million KRW (about $1,510 USD). Kwon Jin Young met “A” at the Louis Vuitton Cheongdam-dong store. Now, “A” has quit the company and instead lives her life using a Hook Entertainment company card.
“A” has spent ₩108 million KRW (about $81,500 USD) over the past 18 months, with more than half (₩62.0 million KRW (about $46,800 USD)) used on luxury goods. “A” has also charged ₩860,000 KRW (about $649 USD) on taxi fare, ₩890,000 KRW (about $671 USD) on car washes, and ₩2.40 million KRW (about $1,810 USD) on pilates and ballet classes.
On April 2, 2021, Kwon Jin Young told Lee Seung Gi’s manager that he couldn’t spend more money because too much money was being spent on Lee Seung Gi and his team. Yet “A” is allowed to spend ₩660,000 KRW (about $498 USD) of the company’s money on a hospital visit, ₩1.50 million KRW (about $1,130 USD) at Olive Young, a Korean cosmetics store, and ₩100,000 KRW (about $75.40 USD) at an animal hospital.
The good days and the bad
On September 24, 2020, at Hook Entertainment’s rooftop, Kwon Jin Young and her friends enjoyed a delicious barbeque meal filled with vegetables and meat. But what about Hook Entertainment’s staff? A group message between the company’s managers was obtained by Dispatch.
Manager 1: They want me to buy some long tongs. I’ll be right back.
Manager 2: I will go buy them.
Manager 1: Where are you planning to get them from?
Manager 2: The hardware store downstairs.
Manager 1: I’ll go get them quickly.
Manager 2: As you said, just clock out of work. Your mother’s birthday is important.
Manager 2: They need more wooden chopsticks on the rooftop. Please buy a pack.
Manager 3: Do you need anything else other than tongs?
Manager 2: Based on their personality they will ask for us to buy more.
Manager 3: The tongs are short lol.
Manager 2: They wanted me to buy long ones though.
Manager 4: A1 steak sauce and sweet chili sauce. Please drop me off at Galleria.
Manager 4: I’m really annoyed. Message me when you arrive.
Manager 2: Lead manager, they said to send a picture of the tongs.
Manager 3: Anyone will be able to tell they’re short. There’s another hardware store on the way to the office.
Manager 4: Wouldn’t they have some at Galleria? Or not?
Manager 3: I went to a neighborhood store next to the chicken store.
Manager 3: I couldn’t find any. Do they really need it?
Manager 2: It’s for the charcoal. I want to bring tongs like they use in bathrooms.
Manager 2: Just bring one that’s in the basement storage.
Manager 4: I’ll bring it when I bring up the sauces.
Manager 2: Director “C” is coming down. Done.
Kwon Jin Young and her family’s brilliant moment was all because of the hard work and sweat of those working under them.
