The Hyundai Seoul as a K-Fashion Incubator... 150 New Brands Introduced Since Opening

Providing Customized Consulting to Foster Emerging Brands
"Breathing New Life into the Domestic Fashion Market"

The Hyundai Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] The Hyundai Department Store Seoul is emerging as a 'K-Fashion Incubator.' As fashion brands entering Hyundai Department Store Seoul continue to achieve success, Hyundai Department Store plans to strengthen customized consulting to nurture emerging brands.

Hyundai Department Store announced on the 7th that Hyundai Department Store Seoul has introduced a total of over 150 emerging domestic fashion brands in the 1 year and 6 months since its opening. At the time of its opening last year, Hyundai Department Store Seoul was the first in the industry to house 13 domestic fashion brands popular in the online market, such as Koor and Thisisneverthat, and has consecutively hosted popup stores for about 140 domestic emerging fashion brands up until last month.

With new brands favored by the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z) continuously entering, the customer base using Hyundai Department Store Seoul has also become younger. Among the sales proportions by age group after Hyundai Department Store Seoul opened, those in their 20s and 30s accounted for 54.2%, more than twice the 25.3% sales proportion of the same age group at the other 15 Hyundai Department Store branches excluding Hyundai Department Store Seoul. The proportion of customers under 30 years old accounted for 65%, and more than half of Hyundai Department Store Seoul’s sales came from customers under 30. A Hyundai Department Store official said, "It is unusual to showcase a large number of emerging domestic fashion brands amid strong sales of luxury and high-priced imported brands," adding, "Focusing on discovering new domestic fashion brands for a unique MD composition greatly influenced the influx of the MZ generation."

The Hyundai Department Store Group is applying the successful model of Hyundai Department Store Seoul to other branches. In January, the Pangyo branch renewed its U-PLEX section and introduced about 20 new brands, including Brown Yard and Wonderwall, famous online fashion brands. Last month, the Daegu branch was renewed, introducing about 10 new brands such as Hotel The Ilma and Bad Blood. All these brands are ones that the MZ generation is enthusiastic about and were not previously available in department stores.

Hyundai Department Store emphasized, "Since 2019, before the opening of Hyundai Department Store Seoul, we have focused on discovering differentiated content that meets the demands of future customers, the MZ generation, and can bring a fresh breeze to department store MDs." Previously, the main criteria for brands wishing to enter were product competitiveness along with stable operational performance such as sales and business networks, but since last year, for emerging designer brands, only product quality and uniqueness have been verified.

Customized consulting tailored to the situation of emerging designer brands is also being provided. Before entering regular stores, Hyundai Department Store supports popup store operations at key branches such as Sinchon (young customers), Trade Center (high-income earners and office workers), and Pangyo (IT office workers in their 30s and 40s), matching the characteristics of emerging brands. Based on customer feedback, they assist in strengthening brand competitiveness through design improvements and marketing strategy development. They have also differentiated from existing department store spaces by preparing permanent spaces where various brands can freely showcase exhibition and experience content.

A Hyundai Department Store official said, "Nurturing domestic emerging brands is part of Hyundai Department Store’s content differentiation strategy targeting the MZ generation," adding, "We will continue to introduce various emerging brands at major Hyundai Department Store branches where young customers can enjoy shopping and culture, contributing to the re-advancement of K-fashion brands."

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