Shopping in Seoul?
Howdy folks I’m gonna be in Seoul next month and am pretty oblivious to the Korean fashion scene. Any shops or articles of clothing I should keep my eye out for? Especially with an eye on denim and alt-fashion. I’m willing to spend on high quality pieces but budget would be sub designer (though I’m not opposed to going and looking anyway 😈)
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There is so much out there that I would say you can’t go wrong exploring outside online recommendations. Price wise they also punch way above their weight class and many do instant tax refund for foreigners.
Some of my favorites:
Mschf House (one of my favorites, mostly womenswear),
TC @damb 🫣,
Hyein Seo,
Peaches,
Ader Error,
San San Gear (my other favorite, mostly technical wear)
Others:
Post Archive Fashion,
Juun.j
Hyundai/Lotte mall is great too, lot of intl and local brands inside to browse around so you aren’t running from neighborhood to neighborhood.
If you approach Seoul without the brainrot of going by brands first, i think you’ll find yourself constantly wowed. Many local businesses invest a lot in their branding and infrastructure so the entire shopping experience is elegantly and tastefully refined. You’ll experience the same with their cafe scene.
Feel free to dm me for specifics
Okay so Seoul the best way to tackle is to go by neighborhoods? And just see what strikes our fancy?
The cafe thing is a good shout, I’ll be with my parents and we often stop for a mid afternoon coffee/snack before continuing to explore
Yes! shopping is fun but commuting in between shopping is not esp once you’re carrying merchandise and youre not cabbing. On Kakao/Naver or Google Maps, you can take a quick glance at stores around which is what I did. For example, If I was going to check out Hongdae’s festival st, I can see that a 10 min walk southwest takes me to Thisisneverthat, Ader, and San San Gear so I’ll plan to group all those activities together then explore new places en route.
Maybe I should have recommended neighborhoods I enjoyed instead,: Hapjeong, Apgujeong, and Seongsu (super hip).
Another note: some brands only appear in Hangul and may not show up in Google Maps if written in English.
I would find a brand I would like that’s really out of the way and the only thing else around are luxury brands you’d probably are already aware of.
Seoul cafes are so incredible i find it hard to be excited anywhere stateside now and I won’t belabor you the specifics of where you must go and what you have to get lol. One note: I think their preferred caffeine content is much lower if you need a caffeine boost so if you were to get something like an iced americano you’d get a single shot.
Sorry for the word vomit, I truly love Seoul and I hope you experience it the same way I did!
Wonderful, I’ll throw those neighborhoods on the list and try to organize based on other attractions we’re going to see
i didn't hit all these places last time i went, but this is the list i made in preparation for that trip
retail:
sculptstore
a-land
lovelovelove
our legacy, thisisneverthat, lemaire, apc, etc. and a TON of other great stores are @ the hyundai mall.
hongdae freitag store
thrift:
omnipeople (there's a bunch of branches, take ur pick)
itsmyshopvous
4 floor vintage + blue subir right next door
Goldwin has a few flagships
obscura store has a great brand list, including their store label, Youth, and a few locations in Seoul (scroll to bottom) https://en.obscura-store.com/
I was visiting Seoul earlier this year mostly looking for Vintage but also checked out lots of retail. That being said I really struggled to find things that fit I am a typical L/XL and at least at the vintage stores most didn't have things in my size. I discussed with a few store owners and lots said their client base typically purchases things oversized so the combination of there not being much in larger sizes + demand for it means its tough to find. This may or may not impact you OP but for those looking in the future at this thread be aware.
Highly recommend checking out these stores on IG and if you like them look at the recommended accounts there. Many stores in Korea have a minimal if any NA internet exposure but almost all of them have an instagram so I found it more useful than trying to google things.
I'm going to dump all of my thoughts here.
International brands that do Korea/Asia only labels to look for are
J Press Korea - I've read online that they have exclusive items if you are into the Jpress look Korea will impress. I sadly didn't find out till my return but good for Preppy/Ivy items
North Face White Label - Japan/Korea exclusive I believe. Included in most department stores so very accessible across seoul. Maybe a bit of a trendier TNF is the best description? Prices are a bit higher than TNF retail but cuts and colour choices were really great here highly recommend.
Ben Davis White Label - Asian exclusive label, this one is more difficult to track down but produces more bright/graphic focused items from the workwear label.
Martin Faizey - Very cool belt company. Found in a number of boutiques I made the mistake of thinking since they are english I could find them in NA but there is a significant amount of Korea exclusive models which I'm sad I missed out on.
Boutique Retail - Typical Stylish Smart Internet Guy brands at these stores most have a website to review before going if you like it or not.
Mode-Man
Bluesman
Joe's Garage
San Francisco Market
Random Walk
Vintage - Not quiet as good as Japan which you will hear a lot if you talk to workers at these stores but still a strong showing.
Hunted Vintage - Little out of the way but a personal highlight for me as the owner was super friendly and the only place I ended up finding something in my size that I purchased. Owner knows all the best vintage spots and speaks English so can help you find what you are looking for.
Aging Percent - Great curation close to many other vintage resellers
Omni People - I see this has been mentioned in this thread but do check them out. Very pricy for vintage but tons of unique stuff and a lot of branches in a small area.
Magnoliamiss - Close to Aging Percent and Omni People lots of old military stuff.
.
Mass Retail - I admittedly wasn't too impressed with the mass market retail stuff in Korea felt just like the fast fashion of home but there is exlcusive stuff which is cool.
Musinsa Standard - They run a online marketplace but their retail space under the 'Standard' name have in house made items that do range up sizes for international shoppers. Equivalent to a high end Zara but smaller more curated selection.
TOPTEN - Korea's Uniqlo is how its described on the internet which I agree with. Cheap but decent enough clothing
8'seconds - Another large Korea exclusive fast fashion retailer lots of graphics and trendy items
This is what I have from looking at my Naver Maps account and vague memory of my trip. Hope this helps feel free to DM me if you want any other information about Seoul.
Oh wow this is really thorough, thanks!
Sizing may be an issue because I’m 6’/183cm but it’s fine it’ll save me money 😁