BRENT EDU

A man looks at gift-wrapped chocolate and candy products displayed in front of a convenience store in downtown Seoul, Wednesday. On “White Day,” which falls on March 14, men are encouraged to give sweets or gifts to express affection to the women in their lives. In Korea, women give sweets to men on Valentine’s Day. / Korea Times photos by Shim Hyun-chul

By Yoon Sung-won

Two days ahead of “White Day,” Friday, temporary stands in front of bakeries and convenience stores were overstocked with gift-wrapped candies and chocolates.

Businesses competitively advertised special offers for the day.

However, the number of White Day customers in downtown Seoul has conspicuously diminished this year.

In one instance, a man gave the stand a quick look before walking away muttering, “How cliche.”

This is typical for a day that has been the subject of scorn and suspicion.

A man picks up a piece of jewelry attached to a bottle of candy produced exclusively for “White Day” at a department store in Seoul.

Every year, it seems, there are people in the media who bash it as one of the most overly commercialized commemorative days in Korea.

White Day was started by the Japanese confectionery industry association in 1978 as an accompaniment to Valentine’s Day, encouraging men to compensate women who gave them chocolates a month earlier to express affection or courtesy.

In Asia, the day has since been enjoyed by lovers as well as businesses marketing sweets, jewelry and other gifts with sentimental value.

Born with such a backdrop, White Day may have been predestined to be commercialized to some extent.

What didn’t change is that the day provides people with a special occasion to show affection and respect to their loved ones. And that itself is enough to make the day worthwhile.

A store clerk helps a man pick out a box of chocolates for “White Day” at a department store in Seoul.

Posters promoting “White Day” special offers for women’s cosmetics and perfumes are plastered on a wall in downtown Seoul.

A man selects a box of chocolates among various other products at a department store in Seoul.

yoonsw@ktimes