[My Person] Kitchen Transformations Are Innocent... Asking About Kitchen Trends in the Era of Extreme Personalization

⑬ Interview with Lee Soyoung, Head of Kitchen Products at Hanssem
"The kitchen is not just a space for cooking and dining"
"Making autonomous decisions about one's lifestyle"
Various uses like YouTuber studios and tea houses
Significant influence of 2030 young generation's interest in mukbang

"The kitchen is no longer just a space for cooking and dining. It is being newly defined as a place to converse with family members and enjoy leisure activities according to each individual's lifestyle. The kitchen can become my own office space or a caf?-like place for conversations. This reflects a facet of the era of the autonomous individual."

Lee So-young, Head of Kitchen Products Department at Hanssem. Photo by Moon Hye-won

In the past, the kitchen was simply a place to cook and eat. However, in today's era of autonomous individuals, as family structures diversify, the concept of the kitchen is also changing. It has transformed into various forms such as studios where YouTubers film videos, spaces where florists arrange flowers, tea houses for meditation and tea ceremonies, and bars for drinking wine, highballs, or cocktails.

The role of making these consumer preferences a reality is taken on by Hanssem's Kitchen Products Department. On the 10th, Director Lee So-young said in an interview with this paper, "Interest in kitchens, which occupy the second largest space in the home after the living room, is also increasing," adding, "Young people in their 20s and 30s are showing great interest in cooking and mukbang, which is increasing their desire for their own kitchen space."

Director Lee explained, "Unlike in the past, when apartment-centered housing led to uniform white kitchens designed only for dining, we aim to introduce kitchen interiors that can be used as diverse spaces," adding, "Hanssem, which introduced the first modern block-type kitchen in Korea over 50 years ago, is now leading trends and presenting a new paradigm in kitchen interiors once again through the Euro Kitchen series."

One kitchen interior trend that Hanssem is particularly focusing on is ‘Ilpyeonggashim’ (a mindset toward appliances that make daily life easier). The kitchen layout is changing around built-in appliances such as dishwashers. Director Lee said, "There is a trend of 'minimalism' where the overall atmosphere harmonizes rather than one piece of furniture or appliance standing out like an object," and added, "The 'uncommon style,' which reflects individual tastes while pursuing a configuration different from others, is also a noteworthy trend."

Lee So-young, Head of Kitchen Products Department at Hanssem. Photo by Moon Hye-won

Hanssem analyzes consumer preferences and proposes various products that apply the latest trends and technologies that change with the times. Among them, Hanssem's representative kitchen series is ‘Euro.’

Director Lee explained, "The Euro line is divided into six main categories, with higher numbers indicating higher specifications," adding, "Among them, Euro 900 is the top-tier line made of premium, high-end materials." For example, the kitchen door surfaces are treated with a coating method using high-quality urethane paint, providing excellent durability and water repellency. This differs from mid- to low-priced products that use plastic or paper materials, as the color does not change even after long use, and fingerprints or stains do not easily remain, making maintenance easy.

Director Lee said, "We strive to reflect market needs," adding, "We read trends through web searching and understand customer needs through monitoring by frontline sales staff who directly interact with customers."