”50,000 won is not enough?” The circumstances surrounding gift-giving at Korean weddings

With the recent rapid rise in prices, there has been a debate in Korea about wedding gift-giving. In particular, some argue that if the amount of the gift is less than the cost of food and drink, it would be polite not to attend the wedding in the first place.
Recently, a survey of wedding costs at six wedding halls in Seoul revealed that the average cost of food and drink per person was 82,000 won (about 9,412 yen).
The price range varies from 66,000 won (US$75.76) to 108,000 won (US$123.97) depending on the company, and the peak season (usually March to June and September to January) is also a good time to buy.
There was a 17% difference between the price during the off-season (December to February and July to August) and the price during the off-season (January). In the case of wedding halls in hotels, the food and beverage prices are much higher.
The average food and drink cost at the three wedding halls was 160,000 won (approximately 18,366,000 yen) per person, ranging from 130,000 won (approximately 14,922 yen) to as high as 200,000 won (approximately 22,958 yen).
This is more than double the price from 10 years ago. According to the "Marriage Cost Report" published by Korea Consumer Resources in 2013, the average price per person at the time was
The average cost of food was 33,000 won (approximately 3,788 yen), and facility costs (including floral decorations) were 3 million won (approximately 344,364 yen).
The cost of using wedding hall facilities ranges from several million won (hundreds of thousands) to
The cost ranged from tens of millions of won (several million). Convention wedding halls cost from 6 million won (approximately US$6,800) to 14 million won (approximately US$6,500), including the cost of fresh flower decorations.
The price range for weddings at hotels ranges from 20 million won (about 2.3 million yen) to 30 million won (about 1.6 million yen), including the cost of fresh flowers, facilities, and stage production.
The main reason for the increase in wedding costs is believed to be the aftermath of the COVID-19 virus. The pandemic has caused most couples to postpone their weddings.
Many couples are now booking their wedding halls at least six months to a year in advance, but even this is a competitive process.
The number of couples gathering at venues that are fewer than the demand has risen, causing facility fees to rise. In addition, it is also analyzed that rising prices have also had an impact.
Due to this situation, the burden on those giving the gifts is inevitably heavy. Usually, it is 50,000 to 100,000 yen.
In the past, people would give a gift of 100,000 won (about 5,700 to 11,485 yen) to attend weddings, but recently, taking into account the cost of food and drink, if the gift is less than 100,000 won (about 11,485 yen), they can attend the wedding hall.
In a community where company employees gather, a user set the appropriate amount of money for a wedding gift. According to this, a "close friend" is 200,000 won.
"Work colleagues" will give 100,000 to 150,000 won (about 11,485 to 17,200 yen), and "acquaintances" will give 50,000 won (about 5,700 yen), but will not attend the ceremony.
That's the story.