Analysis Report
Representative Director Shin Yong-won In-Depth Analysis
Jewelry Plastic Surgery is a large-scale, 'corporate-type' clinic near Sinsa Station, Gangnam. It covers facial contouring, eyes, nose, and breast surgery, leading trends for flashy and dramatic changes with high recognition.
Founder and representative director, a plastic surgery specialist with a Ph.D. from Korea University. While achieving massive expansion and wealth, he has faced legal and ethical controversies, including tax evasion.
Targets patients preferring 'Flashy Style' results, excelling in facial contouring and eye/nose revision. Emphasizes resident anesthesiologists and a cooperative treatment system for safety.
High public recognition from marketing, but divided reputation due to ethical and legal issues like the 'Operating Room Birthday Party' and 'Ghost Surgery' allegations. Patient reviews are mixed.
Representative Director Shin Yong-won is the founder and a pivotal figure at Jewelry Plastic Surgery. His extensive background in plastic surgery is marked by prestigious academic achievements and active participation in leading medical societies.
Director Shin is known for accumulating immense wealth, exemplified by his 2013 purchase of 'Jewelry Tower' for approximately 23.5 billion KRW. He publicly advocated for 'sharing management', emphasizing employee welfare and social service, stating, "I want to be greedy for patients' trust rather than money." He aimed to foster an image of a 'God-sent workplace' with attractive benefits for employees.
“ I want to be greedy for patients' trust rather than money.
Jewelry Plastic Surgery is located at Cheongho Building, 120 Dosan-daero, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, adjacent to Exit 1 of Sinsa Station. It operates across multiple floors (4th-10th, 14th floors), housing consultation rooms, operating rooms, inpatient rooms, and treatment rooms.
This large scale, while impressive, has also led to criticism of it being a 'factory-type hospital'.
Led by Representative Director Shin Yong-won, the hospital features numerous plastic surgery specialists, including Yoo Yeon-sik, Yoon Yong-il, Moon Kyung-min, Park Il-ho, and Im Hyung-woo. As of 2021, over 10 specialists are registered, each focusing on specific fields (eyes, nose, contouring, breasts) or collaborating, typical of large Gangnam plastic surgery clinics.
Promotes bone-shaving surgeries like 'Carving V Square Jaw Reduction' and '3D CT Zygoma Reduction', emphasizing precise analysis with 3D CT equipment.
Key items include 'Natural Adhesion Eyelid Surgery', 'Flashy Nose Surgery', and 'Revision Surgery'. Known for balancing 'flashiness' and 'naturalness' or achieving dramatic transformations.
Actively performs procedures like breast augmentation/reduction, liposuction, face lifts, and thread lifting for body correction and anti-aging.
Jewelry Plastic Surgery is highly popular among patients who prefer "flashy and dramatic changes." This aesthetic is often referred to as the 'Gangnam Beauty' style.
Many reviews note results that create visibly prettier, distinct features. This style appeals to influencers, aspiring models, and international patients from China and Southeast Asia.
The hospital's marketing often highlights dramatic before-and-after differences, using phrases such as "Transformation from a plain face to a flashy face" to attract its target demographic.
In late 2014, medical staff posted SNS photos of themselves celebrating a birthday with cake, playing with implants, and eating hamburgers next to an anesthetized patient during surgery. This sparked widespread outrage for severe hygiene breaches and disregard for patient rights.
The hospital issued an apology and disciplined staff, but faced inspections by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and disciplinary requests from the Korean Association of Plastic Surgeons, becoming a symbolic event of safety insensitivity in Korean plastic surgery.
Representative Director Shin Yong-won was convicted of massive tax evasion. He used illegal foreign exchange transactions (Hwanchigi) to receive surgery fees from Chinese patients via brokers and credit card payments in China, then received cash domestically from illegal money exchangers. He also omitted sales by manipulating charts.
Jewelry Plastic Surgery is one of the clinics notorious for 'Ghost Surgery,' where a different doctor performs surgery than the one consulted, without the patient's consent. This is a severe breach of medical ethics.
Jewelry Plastic Surgery and Representative Director Shin Yong-won clearly represent the 'light and shadow' of the Korean plastic surgery market.
Director Shin Yong-won transformed the hospital into a major landmark in Gangnam, achieving significant commercial success by pioneering flashy cosmetic surgery trends through aggressive marketing and expansion.
Behind this success lie serious criminal acts, including the 'Operating Room Birthday Party,' 'Ghost Surgery' allegations, and 'Massive Tax Evasion,' all of which deeply undermine patient safety, human rights, and national tax justice.
Despite attracting many patients, a persistent 'blacklist' reputation exists due to past incidents and Director Shin's tax evasion conviction. A critical approach, acknowledging both its outward fame and internal controversies, is essential.
"When viewing this hospital from an academic and consumer perspective, a critical approach considering these dual aspects comprehensively is essential."