[Comprehensive] "Not Telecom's T" The Future Technology-Concentrated 'T Factory'... Park Jung-ho's Innovation Store Experiment

Park Jung-ho, CEO of SK Telecom, is explaining the goals and vision of 'T Factory.' [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] "It is not the T of SK Telecom. It represents the T of 'Technology' and 'Tomorrow.'"

The 'innovative store' experiment by SK Telecom CEO Park Jung-ho, who promised to unveil a new concept offline store based on 5G mobile communication and artificial intelligence (AI) technology, has finally been revealed.

An AI autonomous robot equipped with the voice assistant NUGU guides customers throughout the store, and simple payment is possible with just a smartphone without having to line up at the checkout counter. Several 'first' titles have been attached, including Korea's first shop-in-shop Apple exclusive store (Apple Zone) and a 24-hour unmanned store. Moreover, visitors can enjoy augmented reality (AR) experiences, data charging, and relaxation in an urban healing space all in one place.

The complex experience space 'T Factory,' opening on the 31st on the streets of Hongdae targeting the MZ generation, is the main attraction. While competitor LG Uplus recently opened 'Everyday, A Gap in the Everyday' in Gangnam, a complex experience space centered on culture, SK Telecom differentiates itself by aiming for a culture based on technology as an ICT company.

An ICT Multiplex Adding Culture to Technology... CEO Park Jung-ho's Ambition Presenting the Future ICT Vision

SK Telecom's T Factory embodies CEO Park's ambition to break the frame of existing telecom stores by providing differentiated experiences to customers while presenting the vision of future ICT.

At the online launch briefing held on the morning of the 27th, CEO Park said, "The name T Factory contains the meaning of a 'factory' where technology and the future are continuously produced," adding, "It will be a space where technological innovation occurs."

Dressed in jeans, he introduced T Factory, saying, "Compared to the status we hold as the number one operator, it has been quite a while since we renovated offline stores, so I feel sorry to our customers," and explained, "We have prepared for a year to reveal various services that SK Telecom is preparing, which you will like, ahead of the CI reorganization." He added, "It is not a space exclusive to SK Telecom and our customers," and said, "It is a space where ventures thinking about our services and customers of other companies can also participate."

T Factory was built on three floors (1st floor, 1.5th floor, and 2nd floor) in the core commercial area of Hongdae targeting the MZ generation. It offers differentiated experiences in all areas of technology, service, shopping, and relaxation, including ▲representative services and products based on ultra-collaboration with global companies such as Apple and Microsoft (MS) ▲core services of SK ICT family companies ▲24-hour unmanned purchase ▲'0 Stage' for the MZ generation ▲urban healing space 'Factory Garden.'

Yu Sang-young, head of SK Telecom's MNO business, who attended the briefing, emphasized, "It has the meaning of not just a simple flagship store for mobile communication but a new ICT culture and a technology arena that SK Telecom aims for," adding, "Although no concrete plans have been finalized yet, we will expand T Factory according to customer responses."

Inside T Factory... From 'Ultra-Collaboration' Space to 24-Hour Unmanned Store, MS Zone, and Apple Shop-in-Shop

The 'Flex Stage' located in the center of the 1st floor of T Factory is a key space introducing SK Telecom's ultra-collaboration cases. It will be used as an experience space where customers can try various companies' latest devices and services according to customer trends, such as the 5GX cloud game recently launched through cooperation between SK Telecom and MS. The MS Zone, where over 100 Xbox games can be enjoyed, is also located on the 2nd floor. On the same floor, an Apple product-exclusive space where visitors can experience the latest iPhones and Apple services is housed in a shop-in-shop format.

SK Telecom also introduced Korea's first 24-hour unmanned zone 'T Factory 24' on both sides of the T Factory entrance. It is characterized by enabling customers to handle all tasks necessary for activation, from entry, smartphone comparison, plan consultation, subscription application, to phone pickup, by themselves. The 'Media Library,' where SK Telecom's subscription services such as Wavve and Flo can be experienced, is also on the 1st floor. SK Telecom said, "We expect a virtuous cycle that continuously expands customer experience based on customer feedback on themed services."

A media library view where you can freely experience SK Telecom's representative subscription services such as Wavve and Flo

On the 1st floor, the 'Bestseller Zone' allows customers to view popular smartphones at a glance. The 'T1 Zone,' which sells goods and themed products in the exhibition space of trophies won by the professional gaming team T1, including Faker, and the 'Retro Accessory Zone,' which evokes the 1990s sentiment, are also separately prepared. If a visiting customer leaves with a product without payment, a security device linked to subsidiary ADT Caps sounds an alarm.

Ye Hee-gang, head of brand marketing, pointed to the 1st floor Flex Stage as the core of T Factory, introducing, "You can meet innovative products and technologies from big tech companies like MS as well as startups here first. Culturally, performances, lectures, and gaming competitions will be held newly every month." For example, if a nearby university club wants to show new technology to the MZ generation, they can apply through an app. SK Telecom plans not only to provide space for them but also to facilitate communication among related parties to enable new technological and cultural exchanges.

Targeting the MZ Generation... Emphasizing 'Technology' Unlike Competitors' Complex Experience Spaces

Located in the heart of Hongdae street, T Factory targets the MZ generation. The 2nd floor 0 Stage is a space exclusively for the MZ generation, where they can experience 'Jump VR' and 'AR Mirror' to communicate with friends in virtual spaces. Teenagers aged 14 and over can also recharge data up to 500MB per month for free.

The Factory Garden, created between the 1st and 2nd floors (1.5th floor) of T Factory, is a resting space where visitors can experience forest healing in the middle of the city. The garden, decorated with living plants, allows visitors to enjoy a leisurely rest while drinking beverages.

A relaxation space 'Factory Garden' where you can experience forest healing in the middle of the city center

LG Uplus introduced a complex experience space targeting the MZ generation before SK Telecom. Designed like a playground so that it is unrecognizable as a telecom store, it became a popular Gangnam spot attracting the MZ generation without much promotion.

Regarding this, Yu Sang-young, head of business, said, "When designing T Factory, we did not see it only as a cultural space," adding, "SK Telecom is an ICT company. We aimed for a mixed perspective that new culture can be created, and it must be a culture based on technology," introducing the differentiation. Ye Hee-gang also said, "The differentiated point is that it is not fixed and constantly communicates and changes with customers," adding, "That is why we created the Factory Garden, not product services, on the core 1.5th floor of the exhibition."

At T Factory, three AI autonomous robots named Temi welcome customers. Through a dedicated application, customers can check products and services using QR codes, make contactless simple payments, call staff, and reserve participatory programs. Nineteen crew members with diverse backgrounds such as pro gamers and theater actors assist customers' special experiences throughout the store. Jin Yo-han, head of MNO AI DT Promotion Group, said, "We incorporated tech solutions that can be presented in the COVID-19 era," adding, "We aim for a store where customers can pay by themselves, video consultations open by pressing a button in an untact environment, and technology and people harmonize."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

SK Telecom also has plans to expand T Factory in the future. Kim Sung-jun, head of Distribution Division 1, emphasized, "We are actively considering additional expansion so that more customers can experience it," adding, "We will also implant elements that customers like into existing offline stores to use T Factory as a success model for expansion."

They are also considering expanding unmanned stores within T Factory. Kim said, "We are thinking in two tracks: one is to improve the operational efficiency of existing distribution networks, and the other is to have unmanned stores welcoming customers 24 hours in places like airports that our distribution network cannot cover."

On this day, SK Telecom introduced a new BI for T Store, different from the existing SK Telecom T. CEO Park Jung-ho, who introduced T Store with AI assistant Aria at the beginning of the event, also hinted that a CI change is being prepared soon.

Regarding this, Yu Sang-young said, "The T as SK Telecom's brand had many meanings related to mobile communication. The T we want to create now is the T of technology and tomorrow, aiming for new ICT," adding, "We have the will to create a new BI with a T logo that has a new meaning, and this is one attempt for that."

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