Before the Covid-19 pandemic took over the world in 2020, Garosugil was one of the buzziest shopping districts in Seoul. The street has since lost its luster - almost 40 percent of its shops are now empty. Major fast-fashion brands, including Zara, SPAO, Mango, and Around the Corner have all pulled out of Garosugil in the past three years.

“I used to come to Garosugil to buy clothes, but now I rarely visit because most of the shops disappeared in the past 2~3 years,” said 27-year-old shopper Lee Soobin on Friday. “I only stopped by today to visit the Apple Store.”

Garosugil, one of the major shopping districts in Seoul, has a vacancy rate of 36.5% as of June 2023. / Kim Ga-yeon

Experts and realtors blame gentrification for Garosugil’s decline. Rising rents have forced shops out of the street for more affordable shopping districts.

“The landlords of Garosugil stores are charging 28 million won ($21,000) in rent per 33 square meters,” said a real estate agent who works near the street. “Even big retail companies can’t afford to spend so much on rent unless it’s for a specific purpose.”

Out of Seoul’s six major commercial districts - Myeongdong, Gangnam Station, Hongdae, Garosugil, Hannam-Itaewon, and Cheongdam - only Garosugil’s vacancy rate surpassed 30 percent in the second quarter of 2023, according to real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield.

The rate of empty shops in Garosugil reached 36.5 percent in the second quarter, up from 28.7 percent a year ago.

“Beauty and fashion stores in Garosugil are facing a huge deficit because rent is expensive and the number of customers has decreased sharply since the pandemic,” said a clerk at a cosmetics store in Garosugil. “I’m worried that the situation will only get worse.”

The Tamburins flagship store in Serosugil was filled with tourists on Oct. 24, 2023. / Kim Ga-yeon

Young shoppers have instead moved on to Serosugil, the street adjacent to Garosugil. In the past few years, trendy restaurants, cafes, and shops have opened up in Serosugil, where the rent isn’t as high as in Garosugil.

Shop owners in the area are concerned that Serosugil’s boom won’t last if Garosugil remains lackluster. “Shops and restaurants that have become viral on YouTube or Instagram are extremely popular, but the rest are barely making ends meet,” said a cafe owner in Serosugil. “Serosugil can’t keep this up if main street (Garosugil) doesn’t come back to life.”

The rise of Seongsu-dong is also one of the reasons why Garosugil losing popularity among millennials and Gen Z. Brands ranging from Chanel to Jacquemus have opened pop-up stores in Seongsu-dong to attract young customers.

Seongu-dong’s vacancy rate was 5.8% in the second quarter, according to Cushman & Wakefield. Sales of retail stores, restaurants, and other services increased by 41.4 percent in the second quarter compared to the same period last year.

“Myeongdong and Garosugil have been hit especially hard by the covid pandemic partly because these are places where many foreigners used to visit,” said Ok Gyung-yung, a professor of consumer economics at Sookmyung Women’s University. “This, coupled with gentrification due to rising rents, is why Garosugil is still not recovering.”

This article was originally published on Oct 26, 2023.