Seoul Fashion Week Showcases New Talent, Programs

Seoul Fashion Week freshened up for its spring 2025 edition with a bigger selection of new domestic brands and off-site programs, providing a better glimpse of the burgeoning South Korean fashion scene. It was a much-needed change after experimenting with different formats in the post-COVID-19 era that had been rather shaky.

All the main shows returned to the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, no longer split between there and the Seongsu-dong fashion district. Media, buyers and fashion enthusiasts from near and far gathered in the Zaha Hadid-designed landmark, with many unafraid to don dramatically long tulle dresses in the prolonged monsoon.

“There are definitely a more diverse range of brands offered this season compared to before,” said He Jhih Sheng, buying manager for Nihow, a Taipei multilabel store specializing in menswear. He was spotted making personal purchases at Ulkin’s Hannam-dong store, where the unisex streetwear brand chose to conduct business meetings instead of the trade show.

“I am genuinely a fan of Ulkin,” said Nihow’s chief executive officer Willy Su. Ulkin’s creative director Lee Seongdong launched a collaboration line with Disney in subtle, neutral tones and artistic details, among other deconstructed streetwear.

“There was a bit of a transition last time with the organization but this year there are so many good brands,” said Sam Desner, CEO of the New York concept store 3NY.

“Last year, our store had the best year since we opened [in 2010], and this is despite the bad U.S. economy. It’s because of all the creative labels we bring from [South] Korea like Youser, Seokwoon Yoon, Maison Nica and Greedilous. Everyone wants to live in New York, but Korea lives in the future,” Desner said.

The season opened with Youser’s business core-meets-athleisure looks featuring crisply cut trenches, oversize bombers, and baggy jeans with tailored details. Particularly eye-catching were leather bags with jacket sleeves attached on the side.

“This season’s Seoul Fashion Week was particularly important for us because it was our first time participating since the [COVID-19] pandemic,” said designer Lee Moo Yeol about returning to the runway and trade show after a five-year hiatus.

More than 80 percent of Youser’s sales are based in China, but Lee said his brand has recently enjoyed more demand both at home and in Western markets. Meetings were held with European department stores like Printemps and U.S. stores including 3NY.

Seoul’s New Talent

Seoul Fashion Week’s runway lineup of 21 local brands included six debuts: Duckdive, L’Eau et, Arts de Base, Kelly Shin, Cokie and Phenomenon Seeper. There were three off-shows by Sling Stone, Caruso and Big Park, which were held at the DDP outdoor space and Seosomun Shrine History Museum.

Phenomenon Seeper began taking part in trade shows only last year, but the unisex label is already stocked in stores across six Asian cities including Tokyo, Osaka and Jakarta. SFW marked its inaugural runway experience.

“Seoul Fashion Week is a gateway for designer brands, so this is really just the beginning for our brand,” said creative director Jang Se Hoon, who showcased retroreflective fabrics for its pinstripe skirts and metal and glittery yarn that added sparkle to cropped wool blouses.

Kelly Shin also offered a host of glimmering fabrics for her namesake women’s line: mermaid-like gowns in jewel tones making a nod to Korean traditional “hanbok” and sheer pastel coats reminiscent of Monet’s water lilies.

Arts de Base, a young brand with just one previous experience on the runway, presented a comprehensive collection of sensual yet understated, fetishistic creations: leather corsets to cropped tops and handbags with garter belt-inspired motifs.

“By combining aesthetic elements such as lace decorations and body painting with clothes, we strive to communicate our thoughts about beauty,” said designer Ko Minwoo, who co-heads the brand with director Choi Hyun Beom. “Seoul Fashion Week is a stage that I believe designers must experience. We hope to be able to present more of our vision in the future,” Ko said.

Tradeshow Expansions

Other slightly more seasoned brands offered their respective takes on fetishism. Maison Nica mixed 17th- and 18th-century European bustier and corset with Barbie-core, while Bonbom offered more of its signature pleated couture with deconstructed details using bra straps and piercings.

Bonbom’s designs inspired by the female personas of Mad Max were not shown on the runway but in the newly launched Presentation program. Seoul Metropolitan government, which funds and organizes Seoul Fashion Week, provided four brands — Bonbom, Eenk, Mmam and Seokwoon Yoon — as well as local textile giant Hyosung TNC with private exhibition spaces to discuss their new lines with buyers and press in a more intimate setting.

“Having a solo venue made it much more exciting to present my collection than renting a booth in a trade show,” said Bonbom’s designer Jo Bonbom.

Though Presentation program results were not included in SFW’s performance report announced on Thursday, the three-day trade show presenting 62 domestic brands at DDP this season resulted in an aggregate consultation value of $6 million. This is an uptick from $5.63 million recorded in Seoul Fashion Week’s fall 2024 edition in February.

The final estimate of executed contracts, which was $5.24 million in the spring, is expected to be higher according to organizers.

The number of meetings also went up, from 1,179 last season to 1,354. There were more participants, totaling 117 buyers from 22 countries compared to 101 buyers representing 21 countries last season.

“I decided to apply for the Presentation program because of the possible chance to take part in a Milan Fashion Week showcase. Fortunately, we were selected for it,” Jo said.

This was possible for Bonbom and other labels because, according to Huh Sunju, team leader of the Seoul city’s beauty and fashion industry division, Seoul City signed in February a memorandum of understanding with the National Chamber of Italian Fashion.

“[The memorandum of understanding] facilitated our participation in the Milan Fashion Week partnership program. This recent shift appears to have inspired many new brands to join this year’s event,” Huh said. In tandem with the agreement, Milan Loves Seoul, an event launched in February to introduce Korean designers in Milan, expanded its program this season to host a showcase of 13 Italian labels and a closing party during Seoul Fashion Week.

“It’s a project dedicated to creating a bridge between Italy and South Korea, with a focus on fashion, innovation and culture,” said Ylenia Basagni, cofounder of the event. “Korean brands are very innovative so it is very meaningful for us to host events in both Milan and Seoul.”

Seoul Innovations

Innovation has been a keyword for brands like Hannah Shin, which has collaborated with local science and tech university KAIST to create new materials and presented collections in the metaverse. This season, it teamed up with 3D printing company Stratasys to facilitate the process for traditional techniques.

“We aim to reduce the time and cost required by traditional crafts. This makes such techniques as embroidery, weaving and appliqués more accessible to the general public,” said the label’s namesake designer.

Shin is also known for dressing the likes of K-pop groups Aespa and NewJeans.

“As a new brand, there are limitations to our PR. But we see fans finding out about our products before we even announce them and come to our booth. And so, we make more proactive efforts and do our very best when collaborating with K-pop stars,” Shin said.

Adding to the crowds at Seoul Fashion Week were scores of K-pop fans, as NewJeans returned to SFW as global ambassadors, alongside Brian Joo of Fly to the Sky, Yura of Girl’s Day, Sleepy and Suran.

Other local stars that turned heads on the “blue carpet” included members of the dance crew Holybang, model Song Kyung Ah, model-intrapreneur Irene Kim and comedian Park Na-rae. This season saw more overseas guests, such as Thai actors Fort Thitipong Sengngay and Peat Chajindar Wasuthorn, Indian actress Jazz, Japanese actor Nagumo Shoma and Taiwanese actor Nat Chen.

But stealing the limelight both on and off the runway was Elton Ilirjani, the genderless model who has been gracing major fashion and art events from Paris Fashion Week to Art Basel Miami.

“When I am in Asia, especially in Korea, I feel like I am in the future,” Ilirjani said. “Korean designers are so unique and the local shows are also the best in terms of production: lighting, photography and stage design.”

The 44-year-old owns and runs a headhunting firm, but began modeling three years ago to continue longtime human rights efforts such as promoting gender equality in the workplace.

Recently, Ilirjani has been speaking out about gender issues in fashion. “A lot of LGBTQ representation in fashion is wrong. A lot of big Western brands that bring it in for fun, decoration or [a superficial take on] political correctness. But the brands that truly accepted people like me are mainly Asian — Korean, Japanese and Chinese. Here, there is so much innovation,” Ilirjani said.

The Dubai Market

Seoul Fashion Week, however, also appeals to a drastically different set of serious fashion shoppers. Evgenia Bayandina, creative director of Dubai multibrand store Essentials 5ive, has returned to Seoul Fashion Week for the seventh year. She said she finds a good range of looks that are conservative enough for Dubai’s culture and religion but are at the same time unique in terms of design. Her store often collaborate with brands like Mmam to custom-order longer sleeves and hems.

“Seoul Fashion Week is very creative and the price is also preferable to Paris and New York,” she said, adding that South Korea is also “number one” for natural fabrics like Tencel and cotton that suit Dubai’s hot climate.

JulyColumn, which was invited to show after opening SFW last season, brought more of its artfully twisted knits as well as a mix of other fun textures in natural fabrics, created with minute attention to detail: linen and cotton appliqués, delicate fishnets and threads let loose and free.

“The fact that we are here again and again means we are finding something special here,” Bayandina said.