Chung Ju-yung or Jung Joo-young (Korean: 정주영; 25 November 1915 – 21 March 2001), was a South Korean entrepreneur and the founder of Hyundai Groups, one of the largest chaebols in South Korea. Raised as the eldest son of a poor Korean farmer, he became the richest man in South Korea. Chung was an integral part of the rapid development of Korea's economy, growing Hyundai Heavy Industries to be the largest shipbuilder in the world, as well as growing Hyundai Motor Group into the largest automobile manufacturer in Korea, and the third largest in the world. Chung was also a vital contributor to the development of South Korea's infrastructure after the Korean War's destruction of infrastructure, such as constructing the Gyeongbu Expressway in 1970, connecting the capital, Seoul, to the port city of Busan, in alliance with President Park Chung Hee.
Chung's business ventures steered through the tumultuous times of Japanese colonial rule in Korea as well as the post-Korean War stresses on the economy.
Chung explained his success in his statement: "Our people succeeded because they devoted their enterprising spirits. They used the forces of other minds. Conviction ... creates indomitable efforts. This is the key to (true) miracles ... Man's potential is limitless."[1]
Biography
Early life
Chung Ju-yung was born in Tongchon, Korea, Empire of Japan (now Kangwon Province, North Korea). Born to a large impoverished family of peasants, he was the eldest of seven children. As a young boy, Chung dreamed of becoming a school teacher, but his hopes were cut short because the restrictive environment at the time kept the family stuck in poverty, effectively keeping Chung away from higher educational opportunities.[2] Despite the setbacks, Chung was able to attend a local Confucian school run by his grandfather whenever his time was not taken up by tasks on the family farm.[3]
Chung's talent for business became apparent during his trips into town where he would sell wood.[4] The fast-paced atmosphere of the town along with the articles in newspapers Chung read sparked his imagination; he soon grew tired of the poverty that he and his family had to endure.
First escape attempt
At the age of sixteen, Chung and a friend decided to travel to the city of Seishin (Chongjin, currently in North Korea) for work in hopes of escaping the harsh realities of farm life.[3][5] After a 15-mile trek through the most dangerous parts of the Paechun valley, the pair reached the town of Kōgen (Kowon, currently in North Korea) where they took up jobs as construction workers.[3] They worked long hours for low pay but Chung enjoyed that he could earn money independently. Chung and his friend continued the work for two months until Chung's father learned of their whereabouts.
Second escape attempt
The journey that Chung and his friend had embarked on made him realize his passion for civil engineering and gave him a sense of accomplishment. Once he returned to his home village of Gasan-ri in Tsūsen-gun, he devised another escape plan: this time towards Keijō (formerly Hanseong, currently Seoul). With two companions, Chung left for Keijō in April 1933.[3] The journey seemed destined for failure, especially since one of the boys was caught by a sibling early on. More misfortune came upon them when Chung and his friend were conned by a stranger who promised them jobs but instead took all of their money. The journey came to an end when Chung's father found the two staying at Chung's grandfather's house nearby.
Third escape attempt
Chung once again found himself in Asan, where he remained for a year helping his father work on the family farm. Once his duties to the family were complete, Chung decided it was time to make another attempt at getting out of poverty. He managed to get a train ticket for 70 won by selling one of his father's cows.[3][5] Once he arrived in Keijō, Chung enrolled himself in a local bookkeeping school hoping to start a career as an accountant. Things went smoothly for two months when his father managed to find him and after a mild argument, took him back to Gasan.
Rice merchant
In 1933,[5] at age 18, Chung decided to make a fourth escape. He left during the night with a friend who was trying to escape a forced marriage.[3] Once Chung reached the capital, he jumped at any job he could find. He worked first as a laborer at Jinsen Harbor (Incheon, currently in South Korea),[3][5] a construction worker at Boseong Professional School and as a handyman for a starch syrup factory.[3][5]
After working at the factory for nearly a year, Chung landed a job as a deliveryman at the Bokheung Rice Store in Keijō.[3][5] Chung's new job offered him room for advancement and as he became more successful at it, he decided to stay on full time. He eventually won the praise of the rice store's core customers, which impressed the owner so much that he allowed Chung to manage the store's accounting after only six months on the job.[citation needed] His experiences as the store accountant helped him thoroughly develop his business sense.
In 1937, the store owner became ill and decided to give the store to Chung. At 22, Chung became the owner and renamed the store to Kyungil Rice Store.[3][5] The store grew and made good profits until early 1939 when Japan, in its war efforts to secure rice supplies for the country and its military, imposed an oppressive rice-rationing system which forced Korean businesses out of trading rice.[5]
Creation of Hyundai
A-do Service Garage
Chung returned to his village once his business failed and remained there until 1940, when he decided to try again in Keijō. After considering the reality of restrictions imposed on Koreans in certain industries by the Japanese colonial government, Chung decided to enter the automobile repair business. Using a service garage he purchased from a friend, Chung started the A-do Service Garage on a 3,000 won loan. Within three years, the number of employees grew from 20 to 70 and Chung was able to earn a good income. In 1943, the Japanese colonial government forced the garage to merge with a steel plant as part of the war effort.[3][5] Although his businesses were shut down due to suppression by the Japanese, Chung returned to Gasan with 50,000 yen in savings to try to make the best of the situation.[3]
Hyundai
In 1946, after the liberation of Korea from Japanese control, Chung started Hyundai and Hyundai Civil Industries in anticipation of the post-war reconstruction and industrialization. Chung won major government contracts and became responsible for building much of South Korea's transportation infrastructure, including the Soyang Dam in 1967, the Gyeongbu Expressway in 1970, the world's largest shipyard in Ulsan, the Kori Nuclear Power Plant among others. Chung also won contracts from the United States Forces Korea to build facilities for their personnel as his younger brother could speak English and was on good terms with the U.S. Army engineers.
From then on, Chung continued to grow and diversify the company into one of South Korea's major chaebol (conglomerate). With no experience in shipbuilding, he created the Ulsan shipyard, the largest shipyard in the world. The first vessel was completed in three years (rather than the expected five) as Chung had the shipyard and vessel built simultaneously. He introduced the Hyundai Pony in 1975 and the Hyundai Excel in 1986 using European expertise.[6][unreliable source?][7][unreliable source?]
Later years
From the 1980s until recently, the Hyundai Group was split into many satellite groups. Chung had a very successful career. In Seosan, he carried out a successful reclamation project, using a decommissioned oil tanker as a cofferdam.[8] In 1998, he herded 1,001 cows through the Korean Demilitarized Zone to North Korea, which he claimed was a repayment 1,000 times over for a cow he took to afford his ticket when he escaped his father's farm.[9] Chung was the first civilian to cross the Korean DMZ since the division of Korea.[10] He was the first to propose the Geumgangsan sightseeing excursions.[8] He founded the Hyundai Heavy Steel Company which developed a non-dock ship-making method.
Chung's philanthropy distinguished him from the other businessmen of his generation. In 1977, he founded the Asan Foundation with a scope of activities comparable to those of the Ford or Rockefeller foundations. The foundation was organized into four major areas of service: medical support, social welfare, research and development, and a scholarship fund. Through its efforts, the foundation established nine hospitals throughout South Korea, built Ulsan Medical College, and funded the Asan Life Sciences Research Institute. The foundation also initiated cooperative arrangements between industry and academic institutions by supporting such academic research as the Sinyoung Research Fund.
Chung is credited with successfully lobbying for South Korea to host the 1988 Summer Olympics. This success highlighted the accomplishments of his generation in the eyes of the world and became a source of great pride to the people of Seoul. In 1992 the International Olympic Committee awarded Chung an IOC Medallion for his contributions to sports as a vehicle of international understanding.
Chung also worked to normalize relations between the two Koreas. In 1998, at the age of 82, he worked with the South Korean government to provide economic assistance to the North. President Kim Dae-jung wanted to provide a $100 million donation as a way to jump-start economic development in North Korea under his Sunshine Policy. However, Kim could not find a legal way to transfer the funds. He turned to Chung, who was already negotiating a large program with the North. Kim persuaded Chung to increase his investment by $100 million with money from secret loans provided by the government-controlled Korea Development Bank. The historic 2000 inter-Korean summit took place, with Chung traveling across the border in a motorcade of cars containing some 1001 "unification cows" as a gift to the North Korean people.
Death
Chung died in 2001 at the age of 85 of natural causes at his home in Seoul, and he was buried in accordance to Buddhist and Confucian customary rites.[12] His wife, Byun Joong-seok, died on 17 August 2008, at the age of 88, due in part to long-term heart complications,[13] and was buried in a family graveyard in Hanam, along with her husband and their son.[14]
Legacy
As one of the most recognized and admired business men in Korean history, Chung's identity still pervades modern Korean society and industry. Business-related events emphasizing creativity and innovation have been named after him.[15] Much of the current success of Hyundai is widely attributed to Chung's insight and resolution, ideals that the contemporary Hyundai leadership vow to keep.[16]
Books
Trials May Not Fail (시련은 있어도 실패는 없다)
Born in This Land (이 땅에 태어나서)
Your Lips Need to Burn if You Plan to Succeed (입이 뜨거워야 성공할 수 있다)[17]
김봄내 (15 May 2015). "[재벌가족사]정주영 현대그룹 창업주" [Chaebol Family History: Chung Ju-yung, founder of Hyundai Group]. KJtimes (in Korean).
김태현 (23 March 2015). "[단독보도] 정주영 막내딸 미국서 엄마 없이 결혼" [Exclusive: Chung Ju-yung's youngest daughter gets married without her mother in the United States]. 일요신문 (in Korean).
Chung Ju-yung had five brothers and one sister; he had eight sons and one daughter with his wife.[18] In addition, he had two illegitimate daughters with a younger woman, with whom he started a relationship in 1973; these daughters were not acknowledged until after his death.[19][20]
Chung Se-yung [ko] (1928–2005). Founder of Hyundai Motor. Left the Hyundai Group with Hyundai Development Co., Ltd., the leading housing builder in Korea.[23][24]
Chung Shin-yung (1931–1962). Died in a car accident in Germany while working as a journalist for a Korean newspaper company. His only son, Chung Mong-hyuk, ran Hyundai Oilbank, the third largest oil refiner in Korea.
Chung Sang-yung [ko] (1936–2021). Founder of the KCC Chemical (Keumkang) group, Korea's leading paint and glass maker.
Chung Mong-hun (1948–2003). Former chairman of the Hyundai Group and heir apparent to his father before he committed suicide in August 2003; this left his wife Hyun Jeong-eun [ko] (1956–) in control of the Hyundai Group.
^Steers, Richard M. (1999). "11: Passing the Torch". Made in Korea: Chung Ju Yung and the Rise of Hyundai. New York, New York: Routledge. pp. 170–182. ISBN0-415-92050-7.
^ abc김태현 (9 June 2014). "[최초공개] 정주영 '숨겨진 여인' 김경희 40년간 감춘 사랑과 증오 1편" [Chung Ju-yung's 'hidden woman': Kim Kyung-hee; 40 years of hidden love and hate, part 1]. 일요신문 (in Korean). Retrieved 5 January 2022.
^ abc김태현 (9 June 2014). "[최초공개] 정주영 '숨겨진 여인' 김경희 40년간 감춘 사랑과 증오 2편" [Chung Ju-yung's 'hidden woman': Kim Kyung-hee; 40 years of hidden love and hate, part 2]. 일요신문 (in Korean). Retrieved 5 January 2022.
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