Everything Sells When They Wear It... The Power of 'Chairman Fashion'

Chairman Lee Jae-yong's 430,000 Won Padded Vest Sold Out
Chairmen Chung Eui-sun and Shin Dong-bin Also in Casual Fashion
Using Attention to Introduce Eco-Friendly Products

JTBC drama 'Jaebeoljip Maknae Adeul' features Jin Yang-cheol (actor Lee Sung-min), the chairman of Sunyang Group, who is a key character driving the drama's popularity.

As the craze for the drama 'The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate' continues, interest in 'Chairman fashion' is also growing. This is because the heads of major domestic corporations are successively showcasing casual fashion items such as padding jackets, vests, and sneakers. Brands favored by company chairmen quickly experience a 'sold-out' streak, and some even leverage their nationwide attention to act as 'fashion influencers.'

'Airport Fashion' Syndrome Created by Samsung Chairman Lee Jae-yong

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong is getting out of the car on the 21st at the Seoul Gimpo Business Aviation Center in Gangseo-gu to depart for Vietnam. / Photo by Yonhap News

On the 22nd, so-called 'Lee Jae-yong airport fashion' became a hot topic on domestic online communities. Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics, departed for a business trip to Vietnam the previous day through the Gimpo Business Aviation Center in Seoul. Netizens paid attention to the gray Beanpole padded vest he wore at the time. The vest worn by Chairman Lee is the 'Men's Ash Corduroy Down Vest,' which was already sold out on the official Beanpole online store as of 8 a.m. on the 22nd.

On the morning of the 22nd, the 'Men's Ash Corduroy Down Vest' product sold out on the Beanpole official online shopping mall. / Photo by Beanpole Shopping Mall Capture

Chairman Lee's fashion sense has always attracted attention. In 2019, when he was spotted wearing a jumper from the Canadian outdoor brand 'Arc'teryx,' the same product continued to sell out in domestic shopping malls. At that time, the brand was not well known in Korea, and the price was quite high, around 1.3 million won.

From Suits to Casual... Younger-Savvy Heads of Conglomerates

The popularity of 'Chairman fashion' is not new. With the generational shift in the families of domestic conglomerate heads, business leaders armed with a younger sense of style are emerging. Unlike previous generations, they do not insist solely on ultra-expensive suits. Instead, they often favor brands familiar to the general public, such as padding jackets, vests, and sneakers.

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun has already implemented a dress code autonomy policy for employees since 2019. The photo shows Chairman Chung, who was selected as the cover model for Newsweek in April this year. / Photo by Yonhap News

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun already implemented a 'work attire autonomy' policy for employees in March 2019. At the time, he drew attention by appearing at an event dressed casually in jeans and a T-shirt.

Using Attention to Promote Eco-Friendly Products

Some owners use public attention on their fashion to exert a 'positive influence.' Shin Dong-bin, chairman of Lotte Group, wore sneakers from the social enterprise brand 'LAR,' which makes sneakers from recycled plastic, last year. Following this, the brand gained word-of-mouth popularity among netizens and became a hit product selling over 1,000 pairs in a single day.

Chairman Shin Dong-bin of Lotte Group (left) wearing eco-friendly brand sneakers and Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin of Shinsegae Group / Photo by Shin Dong-bin, Chung Yong-jin Instagram capture

Jung Yong-jin, vice chairman of Shinsegae Group, who actively posts about his favorite fashion brands on social networking services (SNS) such as Instagram, also introduced eco-friendly sneaker brand 'Allbirds' sneakers and sportswear.

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