EBS ‘Seo Jang-hoon’s The Millionaire Next Door’
‘Master baker and confectioner’ Lee Heung-yong left a deep impression on viewers as he revealed his tumultuous 40-year journey from a 9-pyeong neighborhood bakery to a leading Busan bakery with eight locations.
On the February 4 broadcast of EBS ‘Seo Jang-hoon’s The Millionaire Next Door’, the episode featured Lee Heung-yong, the ‘baking king who built a neighborhood bakery people line up for’. Operating eight stores exclusively in Busan, Lee, together with 180 employees, records annual sales of 21 billion won and is gaining nationwide popularity as a ‘Busan bread-pilgrimage landmark’. After devoting 40 years to bread research, he ultimately obtained a patent for bread, and in 2018 he was honored as the 13th Master of Korean Confectionery and Baking. Seo Jang-hoon explained his stature, saying, “a presence like Busan’s Seong○dang.”
In 1985, at age twenty, Lee set out on the path of baking thanks to a chance short-term job at a pastry shop. He worked for a monthly salary of 50,000 won and was addressed simply as “‘Lee’” instead of by his name, but, captivated by the fantastic taste of soboro bread, he enrolled in a food and nutrition department and endured days working and nights studying. In 1995, at thirty, he took over the bakery where he had been employed and opened his first store. He even started out in debt to his family, yet sales on opening day were only 130,000 won. Growing impatient, he virtually lived at the bakery with his wife, working day and night, and went through such intense times that, as he put it, he “sliced bread with his daughter on his back.” The daughter who grew up in the bakery is currently attending a culinary school in Japan, and Lee expressed his delight, saying, “It seems we will work together after she graduates.”
At one point, a large franchise bakery opened directly across the street, driving him to the brink. Under the onslaught of telecom discounts and seasonal freebies, 22 neighborhood bakeries disappeared one by one. However, Lee resolved, “I must make better bread,” and chose to compete on quality. He made a bold move by using butter instead of margarine in the franchise’s popular pastry breads. He also actively introduced tasting, and he lavished care on each ingredient, even processing signature local produce himself. Recalling that time, Lee said, “When you make products with sincerity, customers recognize it.” As a result, he became the only neighborhood bakery to survive against the franchise, and ten years after opening, he achieved monthly sales of 100 million won.
Seo Jang-hoon asked, “You have achieved such major success in Busanwhy not open a store in Seoul?” Lee candidly admitted, “In the past, I entered five branches of Seoul department stores. But after experiencing excessively high commissions, I thought, ‘This is not it,’ and it became a turning point to focus more on the Busan stores.” He also published a secret-recipe book containing all his master-level know-how, despite his wife’s opposition. On this, he explained the reason for the bold decision: “If we share recipes, will it not help the development of our country’s baking and the growth of neighborhood bakeries?” In addition, he continues warm-hearted sharing by donating bread to the Busan Association of the Visually Impaired and the Food Bank and giving free lectures for students who dream of baking.
Lee Heung-yong’s life storyimbued with the sweat, philosophy, and sincerity of a master who devoted his life to breadleft a lingering resonance through ‘Seo Jang-hoon’s The Millionaire Next Door’. Next week’s episode will feature Park Chi-eun, the ‘young CEO who fixes homes for free’. EBS ‘Seo Jang-hoon’s The Millionaire Next Door’ airs every Wednesday at 9:55 p.m., and after broadcast it can also be viewed on OTT platforms such as Netflix·Wavve.
