The Winter Olympics has made PyeongChang a huge draw for tourists from around the world,... and has put the normally sleepy town on the map and at the forefront of the world's attention... at leats for a couple of weeks.
The influx of visitors and its time in the global spotlight is expected to bring in the big bucks.
Won Jung-hwan has this story.
People from all over the world have been visiting the Olympic Park in Pyeongchang,... and a must-visit place inside the park is the Olympic Super Store, where PyeongChang Winter Olympics' souvenirs and memorabilia are flying off the shelves. According to a report on Thursday by Lotte Department Store, an official licensed partner of PyeongChang 2018,... sales of products including mascot dolls and souvenir badges are reaching nearly 700-thousand U.S. dollars every day.

While the stores in the host cities Pyeongchang and Gangneung welcome at least 55-thousand people on average every day, … Olympics fans can also stop by at over 50 official stores located across Korea, including the capital Seoul.

"Visitors to Lotte Department Store in Seoul can also grab souvenirs of the Winter Olympics at this pop-up store,… and demand for some of the most popular souvenirs, these Soohorang and Bandabi Olympic mascot dolls, is skyrocketing."

The PyeongChang Winter Olympics is heading towards its end, but according to retailers, the economic benefits of the event won't stop anytime soon.

"Olympic mascot dolls and souvenir badges are the most popular items for customers,… and the sales of the store has increased by 6-to-7 times after the start of the Olympics."

However, revenue from Olympic souvenirs is just one of the many economic benefits originating PyeongChang 2018.
The organizing committee has estimated last year that the economic impact of hosting the Winter Olympics is expected to top 28-point-2 billion U.S. dollars over the next decade by fueling infrastructure construction and the local tourism industry.
Moreover, the PyeongChang Winter Olympics is also being lauded for bringing some unique indirect benefits to the host nation.

"The images of peace and Korea as a safe nation have improved through this Winter Olympics, thanks to the decision of fielding a joint Inter-Korean women's ice hockey team. Also, as Korean athletes stand in the spotlight with each medal they win, the brand image of domestic companies sponsoring the athletes is bound to receive a major boost internationally."

But hosting the Olympic Games is not always synonymous with success and benefits. The Sochi Winter Olympics, for instance, has unfortunately become a symbol of Olympic extravagance and waste amid teething troubles at venues and hotels built virtually from scratch at a cost of more than 50 billion U.S. dollars.

The PyeongChang Winter Olympics and Paralympics came at a price of nearly 13 billion dollars, but with careful and long-term planning, expectations are high that the quadrennial event will