First Korean Department Store to Open a Permanent Store in Japan
Additional Store to Launch on Omotesando in the First Half of Next Year
Strategic Partnership with Fashion E-commerce MediQuarters
The Hyundai Global Section to Open on 'NUGU'
Hyundai Department Store will launch its first regular retail shop under 'The Hyundai Global' in Tokyo, Japan, next month. This marks the first time a Korean department store is opening a permanent store in Japan. With this milestone, Hyundai Department Store is expected to accelerate the overseas expansion of The Hyundai Global, its K-brand export platform business.
Last May, customers waiting to enter the Noise popup store opening event operated by The Hyundai Global at the Parco Department Store Shibuya branch in Tokyo, Japan, formed a long line extending outside the department store. Provided by Hyundai Department Store.
According to Hyundai Department Store on August 19, The Hyundai Global retail shop will open and begin operations on the 4th floor of the Parco Shibuya shopping mall in Tokyo on September 19. This will be the first regular store for The Hyundai Global. In the first half of next year, the company also plans to open a large flagship store on Omotesando, Tokyo’s fashion hub, and aims to open a total of five retail shops in Japan over the next five years.
The Hyundai Global is a business operated by Hyundai Department Store to support the overseas expansion and sales channels of K-brands. It oversees all aspects of product import and export, sales, and negotiations with overseas retailers. For domestic brands, this helps reduce both the costs and risks associated with entering foreign markets.
Since May last year, Hyundai Department Store has been sourcing competitive K-brands and operating stores in leading overseas retail locations through The Hyundai Global. So far, it has operated a total of 43 brand pop-up stores in Japan, achieving remarkable results. Last year, The Hyundai Global pop-up store at Parco Shibuya introduced 23 domestic brands; 12 of these brands achieved sales exceeding 100 million won, and the average sales of the top five brands reached 313 million won.
The Hyundai Global store being launched this time is an evolved model in terms of location strategy and operation, compared to previous pop-up stores. To efficiently operate its permanent offline store, Hyundai Department Store has also secured a strategic investor. In May, the company made a strategic investment of 30 billion yen in MediQuarters, a Japanese startup operating an online fashion mall.
MediQuarters has been operating the online fashion mall 'NUGU' in Japan since 2020. The company excels at collaborative marketing with popular influencers and currently has around one million subscribers. Leveraging its local distribution network, import/export, and logistics infrastructure built through its business in Japan, MediQuarters will support store operations and help boost brand recognition by utilizing digital touchpoints with the MZ generation (Millennials and Generation Z).
The first regular The Hyundai Global store in Japan will rotate its featured brands every one to two months. The first brand to be showcased is 'Trimmingbird,' operated by Hagohouse. Until October 16, the store will be designed as a Trimmingbird shop, introducing signature items such as vintage-style wide pants tailored to the tastes of Japanese MZ generation consumers.
In November last year, Hyundai Department Store's 'The Hyundai Global' pop-up store held at the Parco Shibuya shopping mall in Tokyo, Japan, was bustling with customers. Provided by Hyundai Department Store.
In the first half of next year, Hyundai Department Store also plans to open a large flagship store of approximately 660 square meters (about 200 pyeong) on Omotesando, one of Tokyo’s most prominent shopping districts and a symbol of J-fashion trends. Omotesando is known as a key commercial area that leads Japanese fashion culture, with a strong influx of trend-sensitive consumers in their 20s and 30s. The new The Hyundai Global store here will feature ten domestic brands whose competitiveness with global MZ customers has already been proven through The Hyundai Seoul and other channels.
To further support the entry of more K-brands into Japan, Hyundai Department Store also plans to open a dedicated The Hyundai Global section (tentative name) within the NUGU online mall as early as this year. By implementing a channel strategy that covers both offline and online, the company aims to rapidly expand its consumer touchpoints.
Hyundai Department Store plans to accelerate the overseas expansion of The Hyundai Global business, extending beyond Japan to regions such as Taiwan and Hong Kong. To systematically expand The Hyundai Global business, the company established a dedicated The Hyundai Global team within its fashion division in May. In Taiwan, Hyundai Department Store plans to operate The Hyundai Global pop-up stores featuring a wide array of K-brands from October to December through a business agreement with a local retail company.
Hyundai Department Store aims to overcome the limitations of the domestic market through a differentiated global business strategy. A Hyundai Department Store representative stated, "The opening of The Hyundai Global retail shop will provide an opportunity for various K-brands to gain recognition and achieve sustainable growth overseas. It will also serve as a catalyst for Korean department stores to proactively expand the global distribution influence of K-brands." The representative added, "We will continue to diversify our overseas distribution models based on our brand sourcing capabilities and expertise in The Hyundai Global business, leading the globalization of K-brands."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
