On the afternoon of the 16th at 1 p.m., a crowd gathered in front of ‘Musinsa Square4’ in Seongsu-dong. The ‘Musinsa Beauty Festa’ held that day accepted on-site registrations as well as advance reservations, leading to long lines extending into nearby alleys. Visitors waited to enter with excited expressions, holding smartphones in one hand and stamp leaflets in the other. Despite it being a rainy weekday afternoon, a variety of faces, including women in their twenties and working couples, were noticeable.
The main space consisted of the ‘Next Beauty Zone’ and ‘Only Musinsa Beauty Zone.’ The former hosted 13 distinctive indie brands that operated booths, offering fragrance sampling, color tests, and mini-games. The places where visitors spent the most time were the sensory brand booths showcasing glitter powders and fragrances reflecting body scents.
According to Musinsa Beauty, for the year 2024, the transaction amount increased by about 9.6 times compared to the end of 2021 at the time of its launch, and the number of buyers increased by about 5.6 times. In the first quarter of this year (January to March), the transaction amount increased by 2.3 times compared to the same period last year. This event was organized to expand the contact points between brands and consumers and to organically connect online and offline experiences, proposing the 'Next Beauty' that Musinsa Beauty aims for.
This is the first offline beauty festa that Musinsa Beauty is showcasing in the first half of the year. It marks the starting point of a large-scale online and offline beauty festa to be held in the second half of the year. Small to medium-sized indie brands account for more than 70% of the total. Notably, there is a high proportion of brands without their own offline stores. Musinsa expects this event to play a practical role in expanding offline customer contact points for small brands.
In the ‘Only Musinsa Beauty Zone,’ 30 brands curated directly by Musinsa presented 69 exclusive products. All products had QR codes attached, allowing visitors to scan their favorite products directly with their smartphones for purchase. Throughout the space, content reflecting the ‘personalizing’ trend was also displayed.
Visitors can collect more than four keywords related to ‘Chukgumi’ to receive a diagnosis of their beauty tendencies and obtain a personalized beauty kit. Chukgumi is a term that combines the word ‘chukgu,’ meaning to pursue, and the Chinese character for beauty ‘mi.’ It literally signifies the image I aspire to, the image I want.
Photo zones and self-shooting spots for social networking service (SNS) certification were set up throughout, enhancing the pop-up's aspect as a ‘playground’ as much as possible.
This year, major commerce platforms such as Zigzag, Olive Young, and Coupang have been holding large-scale beauty events consecutively as they strive to expand offline touchpoints. Particularly, the strategy of opening pop-ups in the Seongsu-dong area and strengthening experiential content overlaps, resulting in intensified competition for differentiation.
The ‘original’ Olive Young plans to hold this event outdoors. Zigzag has collaborated with Yoajeong and others to strengthen its food and beverage (F&B) aspects. Musinsa Beauty is also seeking differentiation through PB new products and curated content, working to realize the concept of ‘Next Beauty.’
Meanwhile, Musinsa's event will be held at a total of three locations in the Seongsu area. The main pop-up will run until the 18th, while the ‘Musinsa Store Seongsu@’ pop-up near Daerim Warehouse will operate until the 22nd. The ‘Seongsu Beauty Tour,’ offering samples and discount coupons through partnerships with nearby stores such as The Tool Lab, Daisy C, Isoi, and Hince, will also take place.