Cost-Effective and Experience-Focused MZ Generation Playground Goal
New Concept Practical Retail Model... Official Opening on the 6th
Hyundai Department Store, which broke the mold of the distribution industry with 'The Hyundai Seoul,' is embarking on another experiment.
Hyundai Department Store announced on the 3rd that it will introduce a new retail space called ‘CONNECT HYUNDAI’ in Busan Metropolitan City. CONNECT HYUNDAI is a newly proposed region-specific urban complex shopping mall by Hyundai Department Store.
An approximately 5-meter-tall artwork titled 'The Visionary' installed on the first floor of Connect Hyundai. Photo by Hyundai Department Store
Located in Dong-gu, Busan Metropolitan City, CONNECT HYUNDAI spans from basement level 5 to the 9th floor above ground, housing over 240 brands including the latest lifestyle brands as well as local content reflecting Busan's unique characteristics. To create a playground for the MZ (Millennial + Generation Z) generation, each floor features ▲ cultural and experiential tenant facilities ▲ popular MZ brands ▲ Busan local content ▲ a complex store for regular and off-season products, with distinctive spaces and brands arranged accordingly. The official opening date of CONNECT HYUNDAI is the 6th of this month.
First, CONNECT HYUNDAI transformed various parts of the store into exhibition and experiential cultural art spaces. On the first floor, an approximately 5-meter-high art piece called ‘The VISIONARY’ is installed. The VISIONARY is an imaginary animal sculpture designed by Jaime Hayon, a world-renowned industrial designer from Spain known as the ‘Gaudi of the 21st century’ and the ‘Alchemist of Materials.’
On the second floor, a natural rest area in the city called the ‘Greenery Lounge’ combines natural lighting and various plants. The Greenery Lounge is expected to become a hot spot where visitors can leisurely appreciate artworks, relax, and post 인증샷 (proof shots) on social networking services (SNS). On the ninth floor, the next-generation cultural center brand ‘Culture Connect’ makes its debut. Unlike the existing cultural centers that operated on a three-month semester system, Culture Connect newly offers short-term cultural experience courses lasting one to two months depending on the content.
In line with the playground concept, brands popular among customers in their 20s and 30s have also been introduced. A representative example is the MZ generation-targeted space ‘New Wave’ located on basement level 1, which houses about 20 K-fashion brands such as ‘Matin Kim,’ ‘Marithe Francois Girbaud,’ ‘Covernat,’ and ‘Stand Oil.’
Dessert brands have also been tailored to the tastes of the MZ generation. ‘Godiva Bakery,’ the Belgian premium chocolate brand that opened its first store in Korea at The Hyundai Seoul, will open its second store in Busan. Located on basement level 2, ‘Market 125’ includes global dessert brands famous for acai bowls and smoothies such as ‘Oakberry,’ and the MZ hot donut caf? ‘Knotted.’
CONNECT HYUNDAI also seeks differentiation through Busan local content. Representative brands include Busan’s crepe specialty ‘Butter Record,’ one of Busan’s top three tteokbokki places ‘Darijip,’ the famous caf? street spot ‘Katsu Kitchen’ in Jeonpo, and the Haeundae dim sum specialty ‘Dim Tao.’ This is the first time these brands have entered a large-scale distribution facility in the Busan area. The curated shop ‘RTBP’ introducing Busan local fashion brands has partnered with CONNECT HYUNDAI to set up a curated shop in the New Wave MZ specialty zone on basement level 1. Here, collaboration limited edition products from the Busan-based street fashion brand ‘BALANSA’ are showcased.
CONNECT HYUNDAI also introduces a value-oriented complex store that sells both regular and off-season products from major brands in one place. Fashion stores on the first and second floors will include stores selling discounted off-season products from Hansome’s major brands such as ‘Time,’ ‘Mine,’ ‘Lanvin Collection,’ and ‘Time Homme,’ as well as domestic and international fashion brands like ‘Beanpole,’ ‘IT Misha,’ and ‘Levi’s.’ On the sixth floor, an event space will be set up to sell popular products from major brands such as Nike and overseas luxury brands at discounts of up to 80% off the original retail price.
Ryu Je-cheol, manager of CONNECT HYUNDAI, emphasized, “By proposing a ‘new concept value-oriented retail model’ that connects premium and practicality along with ‘glocal cultural and artistic content’ where global and local coexist, we plan to offer customers a new shopping experience.” He added, “We will make CONNECT HYUNDAI, a new concept retail model not found in Busan, a playground for the MZ generation (Millennial + Generation Z) who seek unique experiences, thereby revitalizing the region.”
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