"I Lost 1 Billion Won on Stocks and an Apartment-Backed Loan"... Jeong Do-jeon's Lee Byung-wook Now Works as a Door-to-Door Cosmetics Salesperson

[Financial News] Actor Lee Byung-wook said he is working as a door-to-door cosmetics salesperson after losing nearly 1 billion won through stock investments and an apartment-backed loan.
The October 10 episode of MBN's Special World featured the daily life of Lee Byung-wook, who worked as an actor for 32 years before starting a door-to-door cosmetics sales job.
On the program, Lee Byung-wook visited golf courses and beauty salons in person to sell cosmetics. He continued traveling to meet customers, and the show also captured him eating convenience-store gimbap in his car.
Economic hardship led him to take on work outside of acting.
Lee Byung-wook confessed that he invested in stocks out of anxiety after acting opportunities began to dwindle. He said, "When acting work dried up, I bought stocks because I was anxious. I lost 500 million won that way."
His losses continued even after the failed stock investment. At an acquaintance's request, Lee Byung-wook took out a loan secured by his apartment to lend the person money, saying he lost several hundred million won in the process.
Recalling the time he lent money to the acquaintance, Lee Byung-wook said, "After that, an acquaintance asked me to help raise some money, so I borrowed it through an apartment-backed loan and lent it to them. I subsequently lost 400–500 million won."
The combined losses from his stock investments and the money he lent to the acquaintance came to nearly 1 billion won.
Lee Byung-wook also ran an eel restaurant to get back on his feet. However, the business did not last long, and he closed it after three years.
He confessed, "I ran an eel business, but it gradually stopped doing well, so I quit after three years."
Although he moved from acting to running a business and then to selling cosmetics, Lee Byung-wook had come to accept his current life. He said, "Life is easier now than it was in the past, when I made my family suffer."
Lee Byung-wook is a 32-year veteran actor who has been active since the 1990s. He has appeared in supporting and minor roles in various productions, including historical dramas such as Jeong Do-jeon and The King of Legend.
[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter