National Museum of Korea: Grateful for RM's influence... 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' caused merch to sell out

An official from the National Museum of Korea expressed gratitude to BTS member RM for his impact.

On the July 23rd, broadcast of tvN's "You Quiz On The Block," Kim Mi-kyung, head of the product planning team of the National Museum of Korea, appeared and mentioned RM.

During the show, host Yoo Jaeseok brought up the popularity of the museum's Pensive Bodhisattva miniature figurines.

Yoo Jaeseok said, "Didn't it become even more famous after RM bought it? I heard RM wanted to buy one but couldn't and had to leave empty-handed."

Team leader Kim recalled, "After the release, we increased production and began offline sales. One day, our manager working at the offline shop contacted us and said, 'RM came, but the colour he wanted wasn't available, so he left without buying it.' I felt so bad and regretful."

She continued, "So we produced more and sold them in the shop, and one day RM posted a photo on social media—and it blew up. ARMYs began visiting the museum, and even foreign visitors were buying the miniatures in every colour. We're so thankful for the positive influence he brought."

When Yoo Jae-seok asked, "Didn't this connection lead to a collaboration with BTS?", Kim replied, "They offered us a collaboration."

The broadcast then showed a "달 항아리 (dal hangari//moon jar)" released by the National Museum of Korea that features lyrics from BTS's "소우주 (Mikrokosmos)."

Kim added, "Recently, he's also come to see our exhibitions. He doesn't just have after the visit—he always posts a proof photo, and we're very grateful."

She also mentioned the Netflix animated film K-Pop Demon Hunters (abbreviation as KDH).

Kim said, "After K-pop Demon Hunters was released in Netflix, the number of visitors to the museum suddenly increased. We were wondering what was going on, and we realised the tiger in the film looked very similar to the traditional Korean folk painting Jakhodo. We had a tiger-themed badge based on that artwork, and it sold out quickly."

Yoo Jae-seok responded, "My child also waited for and really liked KDH, so I watched it too. The songs and dances in it were amazing, one of the songs even made it into the charts."

Original article: Money Today