[Insta Walk] Geurim Cafe - A Truly Picture-Perfect Cafe

Since Opening in 2017, Featured by US CNN and Forbes
"A Must-Visit Cafe in Korea"
Noted as Seoul's Representative Unique Cafe

Walls, Pillars, Chairs, Tables, and All Objects
Painted Pure White with Only Outlines in Black
Interior Like a Drawing on a Blank Canvas

Seoul Mapo-gu Yeonnam-dong Art Cafe / Photo by Juhyung Lim skepped@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Isn't 'differentiation' an essential virtue to gain competitiveness in an era of oversupply? There have been continuous attempts to offer experiences different from what has been presented before or to give the impression of wanting to do so. Especially in the cafe industry, which is extremely common.

The Instagram hot place for a stroll introduced this time is a place that gives a unique feeling through the interior material called 'Geurim' (meaning 'drawing' or 'picture'). It is located in Yeonnam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, an area adjacent to a long park made from an old railway line, and is called 'Yeontral Park,' a combination of 'Yeon' from Yeonnam-dong and the latter part of 'Central Park.' This is the Geurim Cafe in that area.

Cafes are deeply ingrained in our daily lives and are often considered an oversupplied industry. Not only office workers but also housewives and students flock to cafes, making them constantly bustling. This is the background for cafes being created with various themes. With the surge in remote work due to COVID-19, many who cannot go to offices, homes, or libraries fill cafes densely. As a result, there are quite a few places that attract customers' attention with unique themes or interiors.

In the fierce competition among unique cafes, how much appeal does Geurim Cafe have? Judging by its rise as an Instagram hot place, the answer seems already decided. Nevertheless, let's take a closer look.

It is famous for its interior design that creates the illusion of stepping into a painting. / Photo by Juhyung Lim skepped@

The cafe officially opened in 2017. Since then, it has been spotlighted by international media such as CNN in the U.S., the global women's magazine ELLE, and the financial media Forbes as a "must-visit cafe when visiting Korea." Shortly after, leveraging its fame, it naturally attracted domestic and international tourists and has now established itself as one of Seoul's representative unique cafes.

The key factor recognized by foreign media for its specialness is its unique interior design. When you step inside the cafe's main entrance, a space unfolds that looks like a drawing done with a black pencil on a pure white canvas. This strange optical illusion is the result of meticulous calculation. Everything?walls, pillars, chairs, tables?is painted white, and only the outlines of objects are painted black, creating the illusion of looking at a drawing.

CEO Lee Jeongsang emphasizes, "When people hear 'Geurim Cafe,' they often imagine colorful cartoons. While I can agree with that view, what I had in mind was the simplification of structure and objects." The most fundamental basis of a drawing is the 'drawing' or 'sketch' itself. Usually, when we think of a 'picture,' we imagine a fully colored painting with both sketch and coloring completed, but in fact, a drawing is basically the outline roughly sketched with a pencil of what one wants to express.

Cups, tables, and other elements also harmonized with the background. / Photo by Juhyung Lim skepped@

'Geurim Cafe' leaves an unforgettable impression by boldly removing everything except the 'core' enjoyment that people can savor in the space, just like drawing a sketch.

The magical interior design was created through collaboration between CEO Lee, who operates Geurim Cafe, and space designer Mark Sohn. CEO Lee describes the overall design concept of Geurim Cafe as 'simplicity.' While most cafes today are overshadowed by flashy and colorful designs, he felt that to let customers fully enjoy themselves, it was necessary to create the simplest and achromatic space.

According to CEO Lee, an achromatic space becomes a 'focus' that enhances consumer experience. He explains, "Just as a red dot on white paper draws the eye to the red dot, because the interior of Geurim Cafe is an achromatic space, customers can perceive themselves as the red dot," adding, "The point is to make oneself the focus." This is also a fitting point for an era where self-expression is highly valued.

Realizing this new concept was not smooth. It originally started in a small building of about 26 square meters (8 pyeong) in an alley in Yeonnam-dong. Word of mouth quickly spread, and customers flocked. However, as so many customers came and the place became noisy, complaints poured in, and eventually, they had to move.

Decorations hanging on the wall. / Photo by Juhyung Lim skepped@

Nevertheless, CEO Lee did not give up his insistence on the 'achromatic space' at the current location, and it has still become a frequently visited spot. He also opened a cafe with the same concept overseas. In 2019, the first overseas branch was opened in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.

He said, "Many people, including myself, still find the concept unfamiliar in the Middle East," but added, "However, during the contract process, the other party accepted the conditions we set, and we were able to reach a smooth agreement." The condition was none other than the cafe's unique concept.

This shows how proud CEO Lee is of the space interior he created for Geurim Cafe. The interior is a valuable asset and content of the cafe.

According to CEO Lee, "A space must become a place where various contents can be created." Therefore, users of Geurim Cafe enjoy coffee and food while chatting, working, or studying, and furthermore, they find fun by taking photos or exploring the space as new content. Sharing cafe photos on social networking services (SNS) also attracts the interest of other potential customers.

CEO Lee expressed his ambition, saying, "Currently, it can be seen as a localized content creation mechanism exposed on SNS as a subject of photography," and added, "In the future, we plan to make it a space that functions as an 'offline platform.'" Attention is focused on how quickly his dream of differentiating space interiors and moving toward an offline platform will become a reality.

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