2016 ECCK New Year Party
The European Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ECCK) held its 2016 New Year Party at the Grand Hyatt in Jan 28.
H.E. Gerhard Sabathil, the ambassador of the head of the delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Korea, delivered a congratulatory speech on the occasion. He stressed the importance of EU-Korea relations and the importance of the implementation of the FTA. H.E. Peteris Vaivars, ambassador of Latvia to Korea, mentioned the mission of the newly established embassy of Latvia in Korea. Ruth Emmerink, the deputy head at the Dutch Embassy, praised the development between Dutch-Korea relations and the need for further cooperation.
Torben Karasek, CFO of the BMW Group Korea and treasurer of the ECCK, opened the night. A total of about 160 attendees that included members, partners and diplomats attended the annual event that aims to celebrate the new year and get together before New Year’s business accelerates to full throttle. Highlights of the night included a lucky draw raffle, the best dresser award and free gifts for those born in the year of monkey.
Notable among the excellent food and drink was a Latvian Black Balsam liquor freely available at the bar. At 40% alcohol with a 250-year-old recipe of many different herbs and spices, one can easily believe that it was originally created as a medical cure for the cough. Certainly no one was coughing at the event, more than once at least.
The ECCK has been organizing a new year’s party annually since it was established in 2012. Various European and Korean businesses sponsor the event, such as Asian Tigers, Chanel, Conrad Seoul, Continental Automotive Systems Corp., Daehyun, D Museum, Grand Hyatt Seoul, Heineken, Indulge, the Latvia Embassy, Millennium Hilton, Lee & Ko, National Theater of Korea, Oakwood Premier, Park Hyatt Busan, Phillips, Sheraton D Cube, Shilla Stay and Vaillant.