Global fashion firms block Korean consumers' access to their IP addresses
Ralph Lauren Korea's official website / Screen-captured from Ralph Lauren Korea's official website
By Kim Jae-heun
Global fashion companies such as Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger have been found to have blocked Korean consumers' access to their home internet protocol (IP) addresses to prevent them from ordering goods from abroad, according to industry officials Wednesday.
The biggest benefit of direct purchases is that fashion items are cheaper in the brands' country of origin. This has become an obstacle for international fashion companies that try to sell goods on their Korean-language websites.
For instance, Ralph Lauren consumers are redirected to the brand's Korean website when they try to connect to its North American website.
“I used the American website to buy Ralph Lauren items during Black Fridays before,” a 34-year-old office worker surnamed Chang said. “But now I get redirected to a Korean website whenever I try to connect to U.S. one. It's a shame that a global company like Ralph Lauren blocked local IPs.”
The prices of Ralph Lauren's steady-seller men's Oxford shirts are set from 153,000 won ($116.31) to 219,000 won in Korea. However, the price goes down from $79.99 to $125 in the U.S. They are even cheaper during a large sale discount period like Black Friday.
The situation is the same with Tommy Hilfiger. Local consumers are automatically connected to Tommy Hilfiger's Korean website operated by Handsome when they try to access the U.S. website.
“Global companies set different prices in different countries due to logistics costs and the origin of production. In this context, direct purchases cause confusion to a global company's price policies,” a worker at a local fashion retailer said.
A decrease in market share is another problem.
Ralph Lauren opened its first official online mall here last year. But because a number of local consumers are making direct purchases from the U.S., the Korean site has not seen notable sales increases yet.
“Global firms will continue to block Korean consumers' access to their home IP addresses to prevent direct purchases. Nike Korea has also joined this trend,” the official added.