Collusion Among School Uniform Companies Increases Burden on Parents… Fair Trade Commission Imposes Penalties
It has been revealed that school uniform companies in the Gumi area engaged in illegal collusion during the school joint purchasing bidding process. Such collusion is pointed out as a serious issue because it artificially kept school uniform prices high, thereby increasing unnecessary economic burdens on parents and students.
On the 12th, the Fair Trade Commission announced that it has imposed a total fine of 190 million won along with corrective orders on six school uniform agencies, including Schoollook, Ivy Club, Elite Uniform, Smart Uniform, Centen Uniform, and Saint Uniform, located in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province.
These companies are facing sanctions for violating the Fair Trade Act.
The investigation revealed that these companies had colluded to agree on prices in advance during 233 joint purchasing bids held by 48 middle and high schools located in Gumi, Gimcheon, and Chilgok from July 2019 to December 2023.
The Fair Trade Commission believes that as competition in the school uniform joint purchasing market intensified, these companies executed collusion to prevent heated competition and increase profit margins.
Meticulously Planned Bid Collusion Methods
The collusion methods used by these school uniform companies were quite organized.
Company representatives met directly or communicated via phone calls to determine in advance who would win bids and who would act as a dummy in each bidding.
Even more shocking is the fact that they confirmed that they exchanged "compliance deposit money" of 5 million won each to ensure the enforcement of the collusion.
Such illegal collusion among school uniform companies ultimately led to an increase in uniform prices, thereby escalating the education expenses burden on parents. Especially for middle and high school students, who are part of the compulsory education process, purchasing school uniforms represents a necessary expenditure, indicating that the damages caused by this collusion are likely widespread.
A Fair Trade Commission official stated, "In the process of analyzing the joint purchasing bidding records of schools in the Gumi area, we discovered signs of collusion and proceeded with an ex officio investigation leading to detection and sanctions. We hope this action will contribute to establishing fair competition in school uniform joint purchasing bids."
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