[Exclusive] Winning Bid of 329,292,929 Won... Fashion Mecca 'Seongsu Station = Musinsa Station' Substation Name Confirmed

Musinsa Secures Complete Dominance in Seongsu-dong
Winning Bid Features 29CM Platform’s Signature Number

It has been confirmed that Musinsa secured the substation name rights for Seongsu Station on Seoul Subway Line 2 through a private contract related to the station name co-naming project.

According to Korea Asset Management Corporation (KAMCO) on September 29, Seoul Metro finalized a private contract with Musinsa on September 26 for the Seongsu Station name co-naming project, with a contract amount of 329,292,929 won. The contract period is three years, with the possibility of a one-time extension. A representative from Musinsa stated, "It is true that we participated in the bidding and won," but added, "However, no further plans such as contract signing have been finalized yet."

The amount is 329,292,929 won, which is 112% higher than the initial appraised value of 293 million won. Considering that CJ Olive Young previously spent 1 billion won to secure the naming rights for Seongsu Station, this amount is about 700 million won lower than that.

It is understood that Musinsa's decision to bid with a figure featuring repeated '29's carries special significance. Currently, Musinsa operates the women's and lifestyle platform 29CM, which is the only platform among those operated by Musinsa that uses numbers in its name. As Musinsa has established itself as a representative company in Seongsu, this move is interpreted as a strong commitment to further invest and revitalize the Seongsu Station commercial district.

With this acquisition of the substation name rights, Musinsa is now seen as having secured a decisive victory in the competition for dominance in 'Seongsu-dong,' which is regarded as a fashion mecca. Musinsa currently operates seven 'Musinsa Store' locations and three '29CM Store' locations in Seongsu-dong, including Musinsa Standard and Musinsa Beauty Space (1, 3, 4). In the first half of next year, Musinsa plans to open the 'Musinsa Mega Store Seongsu,' a massive select shop spanning from the basement level 1 to the fourth floor above ground, with a total area of 2,000 pyeong (approximately 6,600 square meters).

It is confirmed that about 1,500 employees work at Musinsa's Seongsu-dong office. A distribution industry insider commented, "With Musinsa's move to Seongsu Station, Seongsu-dong has truly become the center of fashion, beauty, and lifestyle trends," adding, "It appears Musinsa is determined to make even greater investments in Seongsu-dong."

Customers visiting Musinsa Store Seongsu@Daerim Warehouse. Provided by Musinsa.

The Seongsu Station name co-naming project was reopened for bidding in August this year, three months after CJ Olive Young, who had won the bid in November last year, gave up the naming rights. The latest bidding process was declared unsuccessful once, as both Musinsa, a fashion platform, and Ably participated, but Ably did not meet the requirement of being a 'medium-sized company or larger.' As a result, Musinsa was the sole valid bidder. For a competitive bid to be recognized, at least two eligible companies must participate, but Ably is currently classified as a small business. With the competitive bidding process nullified, Seoul Metro switched to a private contract and finalized the agreement with Musinsa regarding the station name co-naming.

It is expected to take two to three months for the actual station name co-naming to be implemented. Since Musinsa has been selected as the successful bidder for the private contract, once the main contract is signed and preparations are completed, Seongsu Station (Musinsa Station) is anticipated to be officially designated between November and December.