Department Stores Transforming into Art Museums and Playgrounds for the MZ Generation

Shinsegae Transforms Luxury Stores into Artworks... Exhibition and Sales Combined
Lotte Breaks 1st Floor Luxury + Cosmetics Formula with Edited Shops for Young Customers
Hyundai Strengthens Limited Edition and Street Fashion... Aiming to Increase Dwell Time

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] Department stores are transforming into content experience spaces. As online shopping grows, the formula 'sales space = revenue' has been broken, leading to various attempts to create complex cultural spaces where customers can visit and stay.

Department Stores Transforming into Art Museums

According to the distribution industry on the 24th, Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam Branch, which was renewed for the first time in four years since the new building expansion in 2016, decorated its 3rd-floor luxury brand store with artworks. It is the first in the industry to not only permanently exhibit artworks by famous domestic and international artists in the store but also to directly sell them. About 120 pieces, including paintings, photographs, objets, and sculptures, were installed on the store walls, corridors, and customer lounges. This space, operated directly by Shinsegae Gallery, has a resident curator who introduces the artworks to customers and assists with purchases. It offers customers the experience of enjoying art while shopping.

The art wall inside the store, composed of 17 walls, is decorated with diverse works such as photographs, paintings, and sculptures. Visitors can appreciate art products inspired by Eduardo Chillida, Spain's representative sculptor, including 'Echo' by artist Lee Kim-hwan. In the center of the 3rd floor, there is a lounge combined with contemporary art, featuring mid-20th-century Paris photographs taken by Elliott Erwitt.

Renewed to a scale of 1,050 pyeong (approximately 3,470 square meters), the space also houses about 140 famous overseas designer brands. Shinsegae Department Store's curated shop 'Boondeshop' consists of 'Boondeshop Stage,' which introduces brands not yet introduced in Korea, and a 'Jewelry Zone' showcasing various jewelry. The store design was handled by renowned architect Jamie Fobert, who designed the men's section of Selfridges in the UK and the Givenchy Paris store. The first brand introduced at Boondeshop Stage is the French luxury hat brand 'Maison Michel.' Many new brands are also entering. On October 8, Bottega Veneta's first clothing specialty store in Korea will open at Shinsegae Gangnam Branch. Global luxury brands such as Loewe and Alexander McQueen will also open exclusive stores.

Department Stores Changing Faces into Spaces for the MZ Generation

Some department stores are replacing overseas luxury and cosmetics stores on the 1st floor with emotional convenience stores and limited-edition specialty curated shops. Lotte Department Store Yeongdeungpo Branch has transformed into an 'MZ Generation (Millennials + Generation Z born after the 1980s) playground' where visitors can experience a space resembling social networking services (SNS). The emotional convenience store 'Going Mary' on the 1st floor is differentiated with MZ generation-tailored curation. It sells products such as Concept Dumplings, Concept Fried Rice, Yokai Milk, Yokai Ramen, Ujutopi, Dalgwae (Dalgona), and Clean Freak Yokai (wet wipes). It also operates a fine dining concept snack bar. At Yeongdeungpo Branch, the existing concept has been expanded to reveal the process of preparing raw materials such as meat and seafood. A curated space called 'Ramen Count' has also been created.

A limited-edition specialty store will also open on the 1st floor. Lotte Department Store, in partnership with the limited-edition sneaker resale platform 'Out of Stock,' has created Korea's first offline 'Sneaker Resale Exchange' covering about 40 pyeong (approximately 132 square meters). It offers services including authentic and counterfeit authentication, custom order services in collaboration with various artists, and product management services. Collaborating with 'Over the Pitch,' which specializes in limited-edition football replicas, it targets domestic football fandom.

Hyundai Department Store recently strengthened street fashion brands significantly. It will renew and open its self-planned fashion curated shop 'Peer' on the basement 2nd floor of Sinchon Branch U-Plex after one year. The newly opened Peer differentiates itself by emphasizing artist collaboration products, limited-edition brand items, and street fashion brands. It will unveil the fashion brand Uwillno, participated in by musician Dean, for the first time. It will also introduce offline stores for the first time featuring Blazed products from Jay Park's hip-hop label Higher Music. Global street brands such as Palace, Supreme, and KITH, which receive much attention from domestic consumers, will also be introduced.

The purpose of these transformations by department stores is to 'attract customers.' As more people shop online, visits to department stores have decreased. Therefore, they are reducing sales space and increasing experience and rest areas to encourage customers to stay longer. A department store official said, "Offline stores can no longer survive by just selling products," adding, "Department stores will continue to try various attempts in the future."

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