Seongdong-gu Opens Seongsu Handmade Shoes Pop-up Store and Launches 'Seongsu Handmade Shoes Custom Experience Project'... 200 Participants to Make Handmade Shoes Using Domestic Brand Prospecs' 'Smart Order-Production Method'
[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Seongdong-gu District Office (Mayor Jeong Won-oh) is opening a pop-up store at the Seongsu Handmade Shoes Hope Platform and is conducting a pilot operation of the ‘Seongsu Handmade Shoes Custom Experience Project.’
On the 19th, a pop-up store equipped with 15 pairs of handmade shoes featuring representative designs from 15 Seongsu-dong handmade shoe companies and a 3D scanner system that can scan and measure foot shapes opened at the ‘Seongsu Handmade Shoes Hope Platform,’ a specialized handmade shoe facility created under the overpass of Ttukseom Station on Subway Line 2.
This is to promote the ‘Seongsu Handmade Shoes Custom Experience Project,’ jointly organized by the Small Business Research Institute, a Seoul City subsidized organization, involving 15 small handmade shoe businesses in Seongsu and the large corporation Prospex (LS Networks).
The opening of this pop-up store serves as a trial stage for a win-win project where small business owners in Seongsu-dong, who lack stores and sales channels, can share the nationwide distribution network and product promotion capabilities owned by a large corporation.
Starting with recruiting participating companies in August, handmade shoe designers planned and produced samples, ultimately selecting 15 designs and completing prototypes.
The prototypes are displayed at the pop-up store exhibition hall and the Prospex direct store in Yongsan. A selected group of 200 experience participants visit these two stores to order custom-made handmade shoes and provide feedback as part of the pilot project.
After selecting a preferred design from the 15 prototypes, customers use the 3D scanner to accurately measure their foot shape and size to place an order. The 15 Seongsu-dong manufacturers then receive work orders through the ordering system, secure raw and subsidiary materials, and produce the handmade shoes. This introduces Prospex’s ‘smart order-production method’ into handmade shoe sales.
The experience participants receive the handmade shoes that perfectly fit their feet, wear them, and then conduct satisfaction evaluations regarding comfort and areas for improvement. Based on the participants’ evaluations, improvement plans will be developed and actual business directions will be established.
Byun Seo-young, President of the Korea Handmade Shoes Federation, said, “We have broken the stereotype that handmade shoes are expensive and not popular and have embarked on pioneering sales channels using the systems of large corporations to create an environment where customers can easily access them. We expect remarkable synergy effects through the combination of the technical skills of Seongsu handmade shoe manufacturers and the large corporation’s ‘smart production-sales method.’”
Jeong Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, visited the pop-up store to encourage the organizers and project participants, saying, “I believe this pilot project is a meaningful attempt that can expect the revitalization of not only the 15 Seongsu handmade shoe companies participating in the project with the domestic brand Prospex but also the entire shoe manufacturing industry in Seongsu-dong.”
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