Global retailers fulfill fast-fashion cravings
A yellow tiered dress by Zara
Kim Minseon, a Korean actress, wears a babydoll tube for Mango.
Mango arrived in Korea from Spain ten years ago, and it is one of the first fast-fashion brands. Unlike other brands in which branches are strictly concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan areas, Mango has shops in Daegu.
The strength of Mango is its bold sundresses, rich with Spanish flavor. Some of the brand’s designs for floral sundresses are extremely eye-catching and colorful compared to local brands.
But they’re not an easy wear on the streets of Seoul, and the prices are slightly more than other fast-fashion brands.
A floral sundress made of 100 percent polyester costs 120,000 won ($114.87) earlier this month in the brand’s Apgujeong branch.
The brand fits better with people looking for a provocative design rather than a humble price.
Only Mango’s women’s clothes are imported to Korea.
A T-shirt and a sweater by Uniqlo
Japan’s main fast-fashion brand Uniqlo was launched in Korea in 2005. On weekends, the shops fill with men and women, young and old. The brand covers all kinds of clothes, from T-shirts to jeans and casual jackets to dresses.
For spring and summer items, it’s hard to find items that exceed 50,000 won in the shop. The brand’s strategy is to sell to the last piece to avoid leaving unsold stock.
Last year, two months after a men’s trench coat came out for 99,000 won, the company cut the price to 15,000 won.
What you get at Uniqlo in Korea is practically the same as in Japan. The brand sticks to simple designs, a strength and a weakness.
For smart dressers, this is a perfect brand to mix and match, but without matching with accessories, the clothes could look flat.
Designer Phillip Lim, center, and models wearing his low tie-neck top, left, and His bell-sleeve shirt. [JoongAng Ilbo]
This classic retailer, known for simple designs and durable quality is one of America’s leading fast-fashion brands. Among recent Gap designs is a 120,000 won dress by Phillip Lim, an emerging fashion designer. He won an award winner at last year’s Council of Fashion Designers of America.
New items arrive roughly every 15 days. There is about a 10-day difference between the arrival of new items in the United States and in Korea. The range of clothes is diverse: over 1,000 kinds. A design T-shirt could come in up to ten colors.
World’s No. 1 Fast-Fashion Brand: Zara
It’s been two weeks since Zara opened in Myeong-dong, central Seoul, and COEX, southern Seoul, and the brand’s proven popular. Shoppers had to wait at the cashier at the Myeong-dong store for up to an hour.
In 2005, Zara replaced Swedish retailer H&M as the world’s No. 1 fast-fashion retailer, according Business Week. Inditex, which owns Zara, posted a 21 percent sales growth to $8.15 billion in 2005, compared to H&M’s $7.87 billion worth of sales in the same year.
The brand’s strength is that it quickly catches up with diverse designs. About 10 percent of the merchandise at the store changes every two weeks. A “Made in Morocco” yellow dress made of 100 percent polyester costs 109,000 won ($104.43), 15 percent more expensive than in Spain.
When the brand first arrived here, shoppers thought it was an ideal fast-fashion brand: cheap and stylish. Now, it’s relatively more expensive than other brands.
A man’s dress shirt is about 60,000 won to 70,000 won. Men’s shirts on sale at major department stores here cost around 20,000 won to 30,000 won.
Perhaps because of criticism that its steadily raising its prices, Zara is now having its products made in China, Vietnam and Cambodia rather than in Spain, Portugal and other European countries as before.
By Kang Seung-min JoongAng Ilbo[myfeast@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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