[Sportschosun Kim Sohee] Comedian Heo Kyung-hwan opened up about the painful experience of being cheated out of 2.7 billion won by a business partner he trusted during his entrepreneurial journey.
On the 1st, the YouTube channel "Jung Il-young, the Toxic Introvert" uploaded a video titled "Are French people always this noisy? (Advice, English study tips, Paris flirting)".
That day, Jung Il-young joked about casting Heo Kyung-hwan, saying, "We bicker a lot with the production team, but the one thing they said I did best was bringing in Heo Kyung-hwan," and added, "The only reason I'm doing this shoot is one thing. My goal today is to get Heo Kyung-hwan's phone number," drawing laughter from the start.
Heo Kyung-hwan then asked, "Don't you have his number?" Jung Il-young replied, "The writer won't give it to me. When I try to film it with my phone, he uses his own phone instead. He's worried I might pass it around to the kids [students]," joking around.
Heo Kyung-hwan also responded, "That's right. Something done with good intentions can still be disliked by young people these days," and added, "Don't do things carelessly," sending the set into laughter.
Jung Il-young later asked Heo Kyung-hwan about his recent activities, saying, "You also run a business and have four or five regular shows, right?" Heo Kyung-hwan explained, "That's right. I have four or five regular programs, and I've been running the Heodak business for 15 years, but now I'm only involved as a model. I wrapped it up last year through a merger. There wasn't much I could do myself."
He then said, "There are so many cases where entertainers sit around with nothing to do and end up getting taken advantage of," and added with a laugh, "If people around you suggest doing something, don't do it. If you do, make sure you're just the front man. I was embarrassed to be the front man, and I got beaten up for it. I was scammed."
Meanwhile, Heo Kyung-hwan debuted in 2007 as a 22nd-generation open-recruitment comedian at KBS and gained wide popularity. He launched the chicken breast business Heodak in 2010. The business later expanded and grew rapidly, but it was also reported that he once suffered losses of about 2.7 billion won from a business partner. Even so, Heodak reportedly posted annual sales of 70 billion won in 2024 and had signed a merger and acquisition deal worth about 100 billion won.
