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High Demand for 'Squid Game' Tracksuits Cheers S. Korea's Struggling Garment Sector

A woman works on tracksuits inspired by Netflix series "Squid Game" at a clothing factory in Seoul, South Korea, October 21, 2021. Picture taken on October 21, 2021. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
A woman works on tracksuits inspired by Netflix series "Squid Game" at a clothing factory in Seoul, South Korea, October 21, 2021. Picture taken on October 21, 2021. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
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High Demand for 'Squid Game' Tracksuits Cheers S. Korea's Struggling Garment Sector

A woman works on tracksuits inspired by Netflix series "Squid Game" at a clothing factory in Seoul, South Korea, October 21, 2021. Picture taken on October 21, 2021. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
A woman works on tracksuits inspired by Netflix series "Squid Game" at a clothing factory in Seoul, South Korea, October 21, 2021. Picture taken on October 21, 2021. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

The "Made in Korea" green tracksuits and pink jumpsuits worn by characters in Netflix's (NFLX.O) global hit "Squid Game" have proven a pre-Halloween bright spot for a South Korean garment industry struggling during the pandemic.

A 500-square-metre (598-square-yard) garment factory in the Seongbuk district of the capital Seoul was humming this week, green and pink thread flying off stacked spools off serger machines with loud knocking noises in a race to meet orders.

"October is usually a slow month for the sewing industry, but thanks to Squid Game and Halloween, we are scrambling to stitch," factory owner Kim jin-ja, 54, told Reuters. "We are now sewing 6,000 teal-green tracksuits for toddlers and children."

Kim says her annual sales of 1.5 billion won ($1.27 million) plummeted to a third of what she used to make after the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Most of her orders came from Japan but travel restrictions forced her to shut down in August and September.

She now hopes orders will last past Halloween and sees better chances of renewed exports with "Made in Korea" labels.

The South Korean garment industry had been in decline even before the pandemic with higher wage levels making it difficult to compete with China, Vietnam or Indonesia.

Of the 2,144 manufacturing businesses in Seongbuk, 70% - or 1,510 - are apparel companies, Seoul Fashion Textile Sewing Association chairman Oh Byung-yeol told Reuters.

"The two years of COVID have been a tough time for domestic fashion corporations," said Seongbuk Mayor Lee Seung-ro. "(But) Squid Game, which has become a global sensation, has also made tracksuits popular domestically, leading to a flood of orders."

A child's Squid Game tracksuit was selling for 30,000 won ($25.50) in Namdaemun Market, the country's largest traditional market where stock ranges from kitchenware to jewellery.

A garment vendor in the market said he and others did not have enough tracksuits to meet soaring demand.

Squid Game has been watched by 142 million households since its Sept. 17 debut, according to Netflix, the world's largest streaming service, helping it add 4.38 million new subscribers. read more

Many small business owners in South Korea recognized themselves in the cash-strapped characters of the wildly popular thriller, who vie desperately for a chance to win $38 million, exposing a debt trap that is all too familiar.

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First Major US Winter Storm of Year Hammers Mid-Atlantic States

A person walks down a street covered in snow following a winter storm Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP)
A person walks down a street covered in snow following a winter storm Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP)
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First Major US Winter Storm of Year Hammers Mid-Atlantic States

A person walks down a street covered in snow following a winter storm Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP)
A person walks down a street covered in snow following a winter storm Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP)

The first major winter storm of the new year barreled into the US mid-Atlantic states on Monday, closing down federal offices and public schools in Washington, DC, after dumping a foot of snow in parts of the Ohio Valley and Central Plains.

More than five inches (12.7 cm) had fallen in the country’s capital by midday on Monday, according to the US National Weather Service, with up to 12 inches in some surrounding areas of Maryland and Virginia. The snow was forecast to continue before the system pushes out to sea on Monday evening.

Severe travel disruptions were expected across the storm's path, and officials urged drivers to stay off the roads if possible. Governors in several states, including Kansas, Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland, have declared states of emergency.

In the wake of the storm, dangerously frigid Arctic air was filling the void, bringing freezing rain and icy conditions to a swath of the country stretching from Illinois to the Atlantic coast. The unusually cold temperatures are expected to linger for the rest of the week.

The Central Plains, where the storm dumped heavy snow over the weekend, were already in a deep freeze. Parts of Kansas experienced bitter cold wind chills, with values from 5 to almost 25 degrees Fahrenheit below zero (minus 15 to 32 degrees Celsius) overnight. The cold air will persist, with daytime highs only in the mid teens to lower 20s.

The airport in Kansas City recorded 11 inches (28 cm) of snowfall, the highest for any storm in more than 30 years, the National Weather Service said. The Missouri State Police said it had responded on Sunday to more than 1,000 stranded motorists and 356 crashes, including one fatality.

In Washington, even as the storm struck, Congress met to formally certify Republican Donald Trump's election as president. But federal offices in the nation's capital were closed.

In the city's Meridian Hill Park, hundreds gathered for a massive snowball battle, organized by the so-called Washington DC Snowball Fight Association. The combatants - many wearing ski goggles for protection - fired volleys of frozen projectiles, as one dog tried to catch the ammunition in its mouth.

"I did not come here to make friends!" Jack Pitsor, who lives across the street from the park, shouted with a laugh before launching a snowball toward enemy lines.

School districts in numerous states shut down on Monday due to the storm, including public schools in Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Washington and Philadelphia.

The storm also left more than 330,000 homes and businesses in the central and southern US without power on Monday, data from PowerOutage.us showed.

As of 1:30 p.m. EST (1830 GMT), nearly 1,900 flights within, into and out of the United States had been canceled, according to the FlightAware.com tracking service. Amtrak canceled dozens of trains on the busy Northeast Corridor line between Boston and Washington.

The three airports serving the D.C. area - Reagan National, Baltimore/Washington International and Dulles - were all open, with crews working to clear airfields of snow, but were seeing many flights delayed or canceled.

Virginia State Police responded to 300 car crashes between midnight and 11 a.m., while the Maryland State Police received 123 crash reports between 1 a.m. and 11 a.m., spokespeople for the two agencies said.