A controversy has erupted after it emerged that the T-shirt of the global clothing brand Superdry featured a botched depiction of the Taegeukgi's "geongon-gamri."
Seo Kyung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women's University, said on the 28th via his social media (SNS) that "after checking tips from netizens, an error in the geongon-gamri pattern was found on the 'Seoul Haetae graphic T-shirt' being sold at Superdry's official stores and online mall."
On the back of the problematic shirt, alongside an illustration of the imaginary animal haetae, are the English phrases "Seoul" and "Korea," and the geongon-gamri pattern. However, this pattern was printed in a form different from the Taegeukgi we actually use.
Seo expressed concern that large brands operating on the global stage, such as Shake Shack in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or New Balance, have recently been repeatedly misdrawing the taegeuk pattern or geongon-gamri.
Seo said, "It's not intentional and clearly a mistake," but emphasized, "However, when global corporations use national symbols of each country in their designs, they must go through a thorough verification process."