On August 5, a new video titled “A Day of Revisiting the Past with Senior Jewel Jung” was uploaded to actress Hwang Jung-eum’s YouTube channel. During the conversation, Jung Bo-seok candidly discussed the family business that previously operated out of his renovated home in Seongbuk-dong.
Jung Bo-seok explained that the bakery café was originally opened to support his second son’s dream. “We started the bakery because of my second son. But after he moved out, only my wife and I were still living there, so my wife handled everything from opening to closing.”
According to the actor, his son typically arrived around 10 a.m. but left by 5 p.m. every day to go exercise. “I told him, ‘After you’re done exercising, come back and close the shop yourself.’ But he relied on his mother and never did.” As a result, Jung Bo-seok’s wife ended up doing physically demanding work every day, including slicing bread and managing daily operations. “She kept saying her joints hurt from doing all the work.”
After repeatedly warning his son, Jung Bo-seok eventually decided to close the café altogether. “I finally shut it down and told him, ‘From now on, you need to build your own life yourself.’” The veteran actor said the decision wasn’t about giving up on his son but about encouraging him to take full responsibility for his own career.
Jung Bo-seok recalled that after deciding to start over independently, his son approached him for help but in a different way. Since commercial bakery equipment such as ovens is extremely expensive, his son asked whether he could rent the kitchen equipment from his parents instead of receiving it for free.
Jung Bo-seok responded by asking: “If I rent them to you, what are you going to do for me?” His son proposed paying a rental fee from the bakery’s profits, an arrangement that Jung Bo-seok appreciated because it reflected a greater sense of responsibility.
The actor also shared an amusing change in his son’s attitude. When they operated the bakery together, his son didn’t want to use his father’s name for branding and chose to run the café under his own name instead. Now that he’s managing the business alone, however, his son has had a change of heart. “He asked me, ‘Would you be willing to be the model for the bakery?’” Jung Bo-seok laughed, suggesting that his son now recognizes the value of his father’s public recognition.
Jung Bo-seok concluded by explaining that parents should avoid pushing their children into a particular career or solving every problem for them. “It’s wrong to ask your child first, ‘Why don’t you try running a bakery?’ They need to think it through and make that decision themselves.” He added that unconditional support is not always the best way to help. “Simply helping them no matter what isn’t the answer.”
For Jung Bo-seok, allowing his son to face challenges independently was ultimately the most meaningful lesson he could offer.
Sources: 네이트 뉴스