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BTS Taehyung's music video for Winter Ahead featuring Park Hyo-shin has created a wave of admiration and curiosity among the fans since its release. The song, which came just in time as 2024 was concluding, had been adored by the fans for its warm winter aesthetics.
On February 18, 2025, Shina Ilbo reported that Jung-gu, an autonomous district in Seoul, South Korea, saw a surge in tourism after the Shinsegae Department Store saw a boost in sales following its feature of the music video for BTS Taehyung and Park Hyo-shin's song Winter Ahead.
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BTS Taehyung's Winter Ahead sparked a boost in advertising at Myeongdong Square
Myeongdong Square saw a surge in tourism at the end of 2024, attracting about 1 million visitors. After featuring in BTS Taehyung and Park Hyo-shin's Winter Ahead music video, Shinsegae Department Store, which is situated in Myeongdong Square, also saw a surge in its sales. The department store is an iconic store chain in South Korea, but the music video ad further boosted its presence.
This surge in the department store's popularity has also led to an increase in the effective application of outdoor media advertising. Since the lighting ceremony in November last year, Myeongdong Square has seen a rise in the footfall of tourists. Fans of BTS Taehyung visit the place to find the commercials, whereas other tourists seek the place for up-and-coming restaurants.
The officials of Jung-gu met with Tom Goddard, president of the World Outdoor Advertising Association (WOO), on February 17, 2025. They confirmed plans to develop the area to boost the digital advertising space. Chairman Woo Chang-hoon of the Korea OOH Association was also present at the event.
The mayor of Jung-gu, Kim Gil-seong, has promised to present a more developed Myeongdong Square for tourists starting in November 2025. The timing would coincide with a proposed media tour, which will introduce the location as a model case for outdoor advertising. Outdoor advertising professionals from across the globe will be invited to the Outdoor Advertising Association Asia Pacific (APAC) Forum scheduled to be held in November.
The district plans to install electronic billboards in the new Shinsegae Department Store building, the Kyowon Nae-oe Building, Hana Bank, and Lotte Young Plaza and introduce media poles in Namdaemun-ro and Myeongdong 8-na-gil.
BTS Taehyung is currently serving in the military as a part of his mandatory military enlistment duties. Despite his absence from the public eye, the singer has kept his fans engaged by releasing songs like Winter Ahead (with Park Hyo Shin) and White Christmas (with Bill Crosby). He is expected to be discharged from the military sometime in June 2025.
