Korean platform W Concept has opened, according to WWD, a two-week pop-up in Paris, directly facing the Centre Pompidou, currently closed for renovation works. The doors opened with a festive evening on a Tuesday night, to coincide with Fashion Week.
L'espace, which occupies 3,765 square feet, brings together 600 items from 75 Korean brands. According to WWD, it features Kimhekim, EENK, Bonbom and Minjukim, along with a large selection of K-beauty. The pop-up also highlights 10 emerging brands from W Concept's development programme « W Stage », including How to Love Me, Epoise, Love Dewey, Demeriel and Thisis Pine.
L'offre goes beyond fashion: vinyl records, Korean crafts, rugs and other lifestyle objects round out the selection, reflecting W Concept's ambition to export a broader Korean culture than K-beauty or K-pop alone.
An international tour
After pop-ups in Londres, Berlin and, more recently, during Fashion Week in New York, Paris marks the final stop of this global tour. D'après WWD, W Concept is using the Paris operation as part of its push into international markets, the platform already having, according to its chief executive officer Jamie Lee, a solid customer base in the États-Unis.
Jamie Lee justified the choice of Paris: « Paris est un lieu vraiment important pour l'industrie de la mode. Nous devons y montrer davantage de jeunes créateurs émergents. »
W Concept has belonged to the conglomerate Shinsegae Group since 2021. L'entreprise is now seeking to build its presence in Europe.
