Apgujeong Galleria Department Store to Be Reborn as Gangnam Landmark with Design by Master Thomas Heatherwick

Perspective view of the new construction project of Galleria Department Store in Apgujeong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Seoul City

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The Galleria Department Store in Apgujeong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul will be reborn based on a design by world-renowned British designer Thomas Heatherwick.

On September 11, Seoul City announced that it had convened the 4th Subcommittee of the Urban and Architectural Joint Committee and approved, with modifications, the changes to the district unit plan for the Apgujeong Apartment District and the detailed development plan for the special planning area related to the new construction project of the Galleria Department Store in Apgujeong-dong 494, Gangnam-gu.

The Apgujeong Galleria Department Store was selected as a project site through the second Urban Architecture Design Innovation Project competition, which was held in December 2023. The Urban Architecture Design Innovation Project, which has been underway since 2023, aims to encourage creative architectural design by offering incentives such as relaxed floor area ratio regulations. A total of six sites, including the Galleria Department Store, were selected. Based on the theme "A Jewel for City" and a design by world-renowned designer Thomas Heatherwick, the site will be developed into a landmark.

The city plans to foster the Apgujeong Rodeo Station area as a future tourism strategy hub and to strengthen its commercial and cultural core functions. The combined building area of the east and west sites will be 10,205 square meters, with construction spanning from nine basement floors to eight above-ground floors. The floor area ratio will be 333.95%, and the building coverage ratio will be 56.03%.

In addition to its primary function as a retail facility, the project will feature shared spaces, including an underground plaza, indoor and outdoor public spaces on the lower levels, a mid-level garden, and a rooftop garden. The underground plaza will provide rest and convenience facilities for both citizens and the increasing number of domestic and international visitors to the Apgujeong Rodeo commercial district, and will also serve as a venue for public exhibitions and events.

In addition, the site of Cheongdam High School, which is scheduled to relocate by 2026, will be utilized to establish cultural complex facilities such as a design center, as part of the project's public contribution.

In accordance with the Urban Architecture Design Innovation Project, the city took into account the possibility of further relaxing building coverage and floor area ratio regulations under relevant laws when the site is designated as a special architectural zone through a future review by the Architectural Committee, and made its decision to include the maximum possible relaxation.

Lim Changsu, Director of Future Space Planning for Seoul City, stated, "The decision on the district unit plan for the Apgujeong Galleria Department Store will serve as an opportunity for Seoul to become a more sophisticated city through innovative architectural design. We expect the creation of a new landmark with a unique design and the opening of shared spaces for citizens to revitalize the area through enhanced local connectivity."

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