Even as the Number of 'Adong' Decreases, the 'Adongbok' Market Grows Larger

Department Store Top 3 Children's Clothing Sales Increase
Moncler and Burberry Kids Show High Growth
Single-Child Families Do Not Hesitate to Spend
High-End School Bags Flood the Market for New Semester

Burberry Kids Backpack Worth 1.05 Million Won

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] Despite the sharp decline in birth rates, the children's products market showed the strongest growth in the fashion industry this year. Sales of children's clothing, which had plummeted last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, have rebounded this year with the combination of remote and in-person classes. At the same time, sales of high-end children's clothing lines from luxury brands have surged.

The Children's Clothing Market Led by Luxury Brands

According to the Korea Federation of Textile Industries on the 27th, the size of the children's products market this year reached 1.0468 trillion KRW, a 16.8% increase compared to last year. This growth rate is more than twice the overall fashion market growth rate of 7.5%. Despite the stagnation in the number of elementary school entrants for several years due to low birth rates, the children's products market has grown by nearly 50% over the past decade. A fashion industry insider explained, "As more families have only one child, spending on children has not been spared, increasing the purchase size per person."

Sales in the children's category at the three major department stores?Lotte, Shinsegae, and Hyundai?also increased by 20-50% compared to the previous year. In particular, the growth of high-end brands is steep.

A department store official said, "Premium kids' brands such as Moncler and Burberry Kids have grown by 30-40%, and the purchase amount per person has also increased by 20-30% compared to last year."

The reason high-priced products sell well is due to the increase of so-called ‘VIB (Very Important Baby)’ consumers who do not hesitate to spend on their children, grandchildren, or nephews and nieces. The ‘ten-pocket’ phenomenon, where ten wallets open around one child?including parents, relatives, and parents' friends?is also becoming more prominent.

Sales of high-end children's brands such as Moncler Kids, Burberry Children, Gucci Kids, Fendi Kids, and Stone Island Junior, which are located in department stores, have increased by up to 50% compared to the previous year, prompting each department store to focus on opening luxury children's product stores.

The Back-to-School Backpack War Has Already Begun

Competition among fashion companies to capture the elementary school backpack market, worth around 400 billion KRW, has started even before the new year. New products are pouring out, ranging from character backpacks to classic style bags. There is a wide variety, from 100,000 to 200,000 KRW bags like Beanpole Kids, Daks Kids, and Dongtong, to 300,000 KRW Le Pano bags, and even 800,000 to 900,000 KRW Randoseru backpacks, known as ‘luxury backpacks.’ Backpacks released by luxury brands such as Burberry and Gucci are so popular that they are sold out quickly.

Fashion companies are also actively marketing backpacks on online malls. Beanpole Kids from Samsung C&T Fashion Division and LF’s Daks Kids have released luxurious backpacks combining classic checks and nylon materials.

MLB Kids and New Balance Kids have introduced products emphasizing sportiness. MLB Kids, for example, pre-sold back-to-school backpacks during a live broadcast last month, receiving positive responses. In particular, the Mega Backpack Set sold very quickly. A fashion industry insider said, "As consumer polarization intensifies, competition among premium brands in the children's products market is expected to become even fiercer."

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