chandler cho. twenty-seven. heteroual, heteromantic.
pr specialist at elle korea, former quiet quitter, pickleball enthusiast.

faceclaim & occupation : kwak dongyeon, actor
oc name : chandler cho
position & department within the company : public relations specialist, marketing department
brief background : chandler cho, born and raised in san jose, hails from a family of successful medical professionals. yet, academics never came easily to him. unsurprisingly, he majored in communications, a choice many saw as the easy way out—and they weren’t entirely wrong. however, chandler carved a path in public relations, eventually securing a job at a big tech company. dissatisfied with his salary, he embraced the idea of quiet quitting, hopping between five companies by the end of 2023, each time boosting his six-figure income. then, the tech layoffs struck, and chandler found himself unemployed. struggling to find work in the bay area, he turned to his family for help. fortunately, a relative in korea held a senior position at a certain fashion magazine. despite his lack of fashion knowledge, chandler’s pr skills, family connections, and natural charm earned him a role as a pr specialist.

how many years of experience do you have in the industry?
⤷ about four years in public relations. not to brag but i started my career in a pretty big tech company (hint: it rhymes with ‘moogle’). since then, i’ve worked with a /multitude/ of tech companies so i’ve had my share of experiences putting out fires with pr crises.

what was your reason for going into the fashion business?
⤷ the tech industry is incredibly overrated. from the unstable business approaches to the unethical practices—like how terrifying is ai nowadays—i’m ready to try something different. i’ve always dabbled in fashion so i figured the transition into this industry would be a fun challenge!

why work for ELLE, specifically, instead of other magazines?
⤷ if i have to be honest, elle korea is way cooler than the us branch. they’re leagues ahead in terms of content and fashion. i’ve learned some great fashion tips from your articles. thanks to you guys, i’m no longer sporting ill-fitted suits or looking like a patagonia tech bro! can’t think of a better magazine to work for.

tell us a fun project you've done/would like to do while in the company.
⤷ silicon vally tech culture is utterly ridiculous but one thing i loved about it was pickleball. it’d be cool if we could start a pickleball league with teams in each department. who knows, maybe we could make pickleball a thing here in korea with highlighting the benefits and fashion of pickleball players with a cool photoshoot, articles etc.