Industrial development, not trends, integral to rise of South Korea

Marie Claire Korea editorial featuring Fendi

SEOUL, South Korea – The rise of Asian fashion is an industrial and historical process, not just a result of “trends,” according to a Simone Fashion Company executive speaking at the Condé Nast International Luxury Conference on April 21.

The rise of Asia, and particularly South Korea, in the fashion industry requires a narrative and understanding far more complex than the one normally offered. The development of companies such as Simone has been integral to the development of luxury in a broader sense than generally assumed.

“When we talk about the rise of Asian fashion or Korean fashion, many people think this refers to a newly emerged phenomenon, such as K-pop or K-beauty, that’s optimized for the new media environment,” said Joowon. Park, director of Simone Fashion Company. “However, approaching these trends from an angle of industrial history on a global scale reveals equally interesting insight.”

Industry growth
While the enormous popularity of K-pop has been felt in the fashion world, social media, Instagram and YouTube are not the only reasons the country is now among the top priorities for fashion labels.

One key, under-acknowledged player in that development is Simone. Simone translates the concepts of designers into quality products, playing a role in picking leathers and other materials, in engineering and in distribution.

Since its founding in the late 1980s, Simone has grown to manufacture 20 million handbags per year worth billions at retail. Its workers have 3,500 years of experience combined, yet Simone is a vertically integrated company, not a conglomerate.

Today, Simone sources leather from all over the world, including the Middle East and Southeast Asia, and is the largest supplier in the world of leather as well as zippers. It has plants in several countries and is a key player in the rise of accessible luxury.

Simone expanded to China in the early 1990s, before the country was the hottest luxury hub in the world and before South Korea and China’s relations had smoothed. The timing was perfect, as North American fashion houses began to rise to prominence shortly thereafter.

The growth of North American fashion meant everyone needed to find new consumers. For many, that meant eventually turning to Simone for its ability to deliver high quality products in a short timeframe.

“The American and other fashion labels that benefit from global expansion of Simone are the ones who pioneered the concept of accessible and affordable luxury,” Ms. Park said. “I can say Simone has been contributing to expanding the demographics of luxury from the background and is an important player in spreading the joys we all get from owning quality products.”

Along with this change has come the question as to how “luxury,” something normally connoted with exclusivity and rarity, can continue or reposition itself today.

To the east
Although China is the prime target of marketers, its slowing economy has been a boon for South Korea.

The slowing of China’s economy has afforded neighboring countries such as South Korea an opportunity to become a tourist destination, which in effect has brought increased exposure to the country’s products.

South Korean beauty products in particular have seen a rise in popularity, at the expense of Western brands who entered the Chinese market when the playing field was more fruitful. According to L2’s “The Beauty China: The Rise of Korean Brands” Insight Report, Western skincare and color cosmetics have seen share erosion while interest in South Korean beauty is skyrocketing, now accounting for nearly a quarter of cosmetic imports to China (see story).

Meanwhile, brands are still capitalizing on the country’s growth.

South Korean beauty trends are taking the global skincare and cosmetic industry by storm as the Asian nation’s demand for innovative solutions impacts product development.

The effects of the Korean Wave on international beauty companies are evident in the rising popularity of BB creams and cushion compacts, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. Speaking at the Condé Nast International Luxury Conference on April 20, an Estée Lauder executive gave insights into why Korea has become the prime source of inspiration for the beauty industry and explained how the company identifies ways to integrate and leverage Korean trends in its own businesses (see story).

“Asia and Simone have come from industrial and cultural places that have matured over the past few decades,” Ms. Park said. “This also is related to the role of Asia and its evolution on the world fashion stage.

“We are known as the fast followers and followers of very big names, but Asian consumers have also began to evolve with very sophisticated taste and focus on individuality,” she said. “I would dare to say that we are almost at an inverted point, and we will see whether this third state model will be working and whether Asia as a harbinger of brand business is still a possibility.

“It will be an interesting experiment, and we don’t have an answer yet. What previous speakers have highlighted, the rise of K-pop and K-beauty, combined with the history and infrastructure to generate quality goods – this could be the beginning of something very powerful and exponential.”

from Apparel and accessories – Luxury Daily http://www.luxurydaily.com/industrial-development-not-trends-integral-to-rise-of-south-korea/
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