Musinsa New Spine Breaker... "90% Actual Purchase Share by 1020 Generation"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] #Kang, a working mom in her 40s living in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, is a 'VIP (Platinum member)' of Musinsa. The reason she became a VIP at an online select shop that is hottest among the 10s and 20s age group, despite approaching her 50s, is thanks to her high school senior son. Her son, who used to be enthusiastic about hip-hop fashion, has been shopping exclusively at Musinsa for the past 2 to 3 years. Kang said, "My son asks me to pay for the clothes and accessories he adds to his shopping cart almost every day, and the cumulative purchase amount has nearly reached 10 million won."

Musinsa classifies its top-tier members based on purchase amounts, with the highest tier called Diamond, and the next VIP tier called Platinum. The cost of paying for the shopping list her son puts in the cart is around 200,000 won each time. Kang said, "Buying two items like a hoodie and a backpack costs over 200,000 won. I thought it was expensive, but I always open my wallet because I don't want him to feel discouraged." Musinsa, which has established itself as a powerful shopping channel among teenagers, is called an 'etgoll breaker' (a product so expensive it breaks parents' backs) among parents of teens.

According to Musinsa on the 31st, the purchase proportion of the 10s and 20s generation accounts for about 80% of the total transaction amount. Considering that members in their 40s and 50s, the 'parent' generation, account for around 10%, it is estimated that the actual purchase proportion of the 10s and 20s reaches 90%. A Musinsa official said, "We do not disclose the purchase proportion of teenagers separately."

This is also why Musinsa is being evaluated as a new type of etgoll breaker, following the lineage of duffle coats, The North Face heavy down jackets, and long paddings. Although Musinsa itself is not a mega trend, it has established itself as the most powerful distribution channel for the 10s and 20s, enjoying a monopolistic market position. Added to this are the unique competitiveness and peer group belonging of teenagers, and Musinsa's marketing strategy targeting them, which has led to an overheated Musinsa craze.

The fashion industry points to the 'lack of shopping channels for teenagers' as the background of the Musinsa craze. After the offline shopping districts represented by Dongdaemun fashion collapsed, there was a period when teenagers had no suitable shopping channels, and Musinsa precisely exploited this gap. A fashion industry insider said, "While domestic distribution channels have been centered on department stores and have not diversified, Musinsa's collaborations and limited edition marketing targeting teenagers such as middle and high school students were effective in creating the craze."

There are also criticisms that Musinsa's monopolistic market position is leading to price increases among the brands listed on the platform. Brands that have crossed Musinsa's threshold are increasing fixed costs through various advertisements and marketing, causing price bubbles. A fashion industry insider said, "Many street fashion brands sold on Musinsa are based in Dongdaemun, but they are charging higher prices than Dongdaemun products solely based on 'branding'."

Musinsa is the number one online fashion select shop in Korea by transaction amount, with over 3,700 brands listed as of early January. The cumulative number of members reaches 6 million. Last year, the total transaction amount exceeded 900 billion won, recording a super-fast growth rate of more than double compared to the previous year. Starting as a fashion community in 2003, the startup has recently risen to become a unicorn company valued at around 2 trillion won in the past 3 to 4 years. It is expanding its categories from clothing, accessories, and bags to cosmetics, and its private brand Musinsa Standard is gaining popularity through word of mouth for its cost-effectiveness.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.