Musinsa opens Seongsu megastore, challenging Olive Young

The exterior of Musinsa Megastore Seongsu spanning five floors, from one basement level and four floors above ground, in Seongdong District, Seoul. Courtesy of Musinsa

Musinsa opened its largest offline fashion and beauty store on Friday in Seoul’s Seongsu District, launching the first permanent Musinsa Beauty shop as it expands its offline presence and sparks competition with nearby Olive Young N Seongsu.

The opening highlights Musinsa’s aim to establish the site as a landmark in Seongsu, which has drawn young shoppers as well as foreign tourists and has become a highly competitive shopping district for brands.

The new Musinsa Megastore Seongsu is part of the company’s wider expansion across Seongsu and the nearby Seoul Forest area, where Musinsa has opened more than 10 stores. Last December, Seongsu Station was renamed to “Seongsu (Musinsa) Station” after the company won a bid for co-naming rights — a move that reflects its effort to strengthen its presence in the neighborhood.

Located on Seongsui-ro in Seongdong District, the store spans five levels from one basement floor to four floors above ground and covers 6,611 square meters. Musinsa designed the site as a large complex space that brings together fashion, beauty, food and beverage offerings as well as interactive experiences.

Compared with Musinsa Megastore Yongsan, which the company unveiled last December, the Seongsu store is twice as large and carries about twice as many brands. The Yongsan store covers 3,300 square meters and houses about 500 brands, while the Seongsu store houses about 1,000.

The two stores also differ in layout. The Yongsan location occupies a single floor inside I’Park Mall, creating a denser environment, while the Seongsu store utilizes a standalone building with high ceilings and a more spacious floor plan, giving the site a more open feel.

The first floor of Musinsa Megastore Seongsu in Seoul, Friday. The floor features Musinsa Girls, the pop-up store space Musinsa Space and a KICKS shoe wall displaying sports and lifestyle footwear. Courtesy of Musinsa

During Hankook Ilbo's visit on Thursday, Musinsa’s curation strategy stood out across multiple zones. The third floor features Musinsa Standard, while other sections include Musinsa Young, Musinsa Girls, Musinsa Work & Formal, Musinsa Bag & Cap Club and Musinsa KICKS.

The store also offers interactive features, such as a coin karaoke space on the basement level, a beauty gachapon machine on the second floor and a sports uniform marking service on the fourth floor.

The fourth floor also includes dining options. Musinsa brought in Fuglen, a coffee brand from Oslo, Norway, and An Hongmao, a Vietnamese restaurant operated by a former chef from Mosu. Musinsa calls the fourth-floor dining area “Food Garden.”

Another key point is the second floor, where Musinsa opened its first permanent Musinsa Beauty store. The roughly 500-square-meterspace houses about 700 brands and includes a “K-beauty ranking zone” that displays popular items by category, including skin care, sheet masks and lip products.

The entertainment zone "Musingsa" on the basement level of Musinsa Megastore Seongsu in Seoul, Friday. An album pop-up for NCT WISH marks its first collaboration, and visitors can use the coin karaoke service for one song each. Courtesy of Musinsa

Musinsa launched its beauty label in 2021, but the company accelerated its push this year by creating a dedicated merchandising division and opening a permanent offline store as it expands further into a market led by CJ Olive Young.

Olive Young N Seongsu, which CJ Olive Young opened in November 2024, drew 2.5 million total visitors in its first year and has emerged as a core store for the company. The two stores sit only a seven- to eight-minute walk apart, setting up competition for landmark status in Seongsu.

To mark the new store's opening, Musinsa is running an “On & Off Festival” sale through May 3 at its online and offline stores, offering discounts of up to 80 percent.

"Food Garden" on the fourth floor of Musinsa Megastore Seongsu in Seoul, Friday / Courtesy of Musinsa

The opening underscores Musinsa’s broader effort to expand its offline fashion and beauty business in Seongsu and compete for recognition as a key shopping landmark in the district.

“Musinsa Mega Store Seongsu goes far beyond a basic store — it's the ultimate offline hub for Musinsa's vision of fashion and beauty,” a company official said.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.