Musinsa's pop-up for Matin Kim at Hankyu Department Store in Osaka, Japan, is crowded with customers during the pop-up's operation from Jan. 22 to 28. Courtesy of Musinsa
Fashion platform expands Asian market, incorporates AI
By Ko Dong-hwan
Korea’s largest fashion shopping platform operator, Musinsa, is striving to maximize its corporate value through expansions into various Asian markets and new partnerships to innovate its platform, fueling speculation that the company may launch an initial public offering (IPO) in the near future.
Musinsa said Friday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Moloco, a Seoul-based artificial intelligence (AI)-based advertising technology firm. With the MOU, Musinsa plans to further advance its platform’s AI-based recommended picks for customers.
Currently, Musinsa features products from over 8,000 fashion brands from across the world, primarily from small to medium-sized enterprises, and boasts a membership base of over 15 million customers. The company said that the MOU will introduce advanced technology to better analyze individual shopping behaviors and deliver more personalized recommendations.
Musinsa also opened a pop-up store in Osaka for Matin Kim, a Korean fashion brand the company agreed to exclusively distribute in Japan starting last November. The weeklong event, held at Hankyu Department Store, concluded on Tuesday and was well-received by customers, according to Musinsa. The pop-up attracted 9,000 visitors and generated over 600 million won ($410,000) in sales, both online and offline.
Andrew Jeon, left, who supervises Musinsa's tech division, poses with Kim Yi-young, vice president of business development at Moloco, after signing a partnership at Musinsa's office in Seoul's Seongdong District, Friday. Courtesy of Musinsa
Japan is a key focus for Musinsa's market expansion this year. A company official shared Friday that the pop-up event is part of the company's plan to open its first offline Musinsa store in Tokyo within the first half of the year.
“We want to see Matin Kim settle in Japan first and then focus on broadening the Japanese market for our designer brands in Korea,” a Musinsa official said.
As Musinsa strengthens its market expansion and competitiveness, it has also welcomed Anta Sports, a leading Chinese sportswear brand, as a shareholder. Earlier this month, the Chinese company acquired a 1.7 percent stake in Musinsa for approximately 50 billion won.
Anta Sports reported over $8.6 billion in sales in 2023, positioning itself just behind Nike, Adidas and Puma. Given Anta's strong presence, retail industry experts speculate that Musinsa may be planning a partnership with the Chinese brand to enter the Chinese market.
Musinsa's recent moves indicate that the company is striving to inflate its value before a possible IPO.
In 2019, Musinsa committed to going public within five years after receiving a 140 billion won investment from U.S. venture capital firm Sequoia Capital. With the five-year period ending in late December last year, speculation is growing that the company will move forward with its IPO.
Currently valued at around 3 trillion won, Musinsa reported sales of over 993 billion won in 2023, with total transaction values exceeding 4 trillion won. The company’s sales last year are believed to have surpassed the 1 trillion won mark, fueling expectations for further increases in its valuation.
Musinsa’s recent organizational reshuffle earlier this month signals at the company’s possible push for an IPO soon. The company recently appointed Choi Woon-sik, the former CEO of Eland World, the holding company of Eland Group, known for his role in driving New Balance's domestic success. In October, Jeon Jun-hee, the former CEO of Korea’s major food delivery platform Yogiyo, also joined Musinsa as the head of its tech division.
Market experts believe that Musinsa's IPO process will accelerate once its 2024 performance is publicly disclosed in the first quarter.
English (United States) ·