Mugler x Gentle Monster at Seoul Dosan Park
Entrance to the Gentle Monster Seoul Dosan Park flagship store
It just so happened that I was out and about on the day of the launch of the Mugler x Gentle Monster collaboration and so despite the heavy rain (felt quite on brand too) – it’s the middle of the rainy season in South Korea – I made sure to stop by Gentle Monster’s Seoul Dosan Park flagship store for some first-hand impressions.
A COLLABORATION THAT FEELS EXTREMELY AUTHENTIC – if there ever was a perfect image synergy between two brands… the Mugler x Gentle Monster collab is definitely close to being the dictionary example; some partnerships don’t make sense but this one – this one is a match made in heaven (?)
PERFECTLY ADAPTED VISUAL AND AUDIO EXPERIENCE – the pop-up feels minimal and outlandish – very adequate, don’t you think? Mugler was famous for his ‘avant-garde, architectural, hyperfeminine and theatrical approach to haute couture’ and this is very well translated into the space through shapes, materials, and fabrics – the futuristic aspect is also representative of Gentle Monster. The music feels quite intense too, adding to the otherwordliness
THE CENTERPIECE EMBODIES THE ETHOS OF BOTH BRANDS – the kinetic structure – the woman in the center of the room – created by Gentle Monster’s Robot Lab was inspired by Mugler’s iconic “Maschinenmensch” robot heritage. It’s eerie how human-like it is and how well it moves, it’s almost like meeting the main protagonist of Ex Machina – look at her torso and leg! When the store traffic was lower, I also caught one of the Client Advisors just standing in front of it as if admiring a sculpture in church – felt very religious to me
SELECTIVE, LOW PRODUCT RANGE – the eyewear collection isn’t big – it’s two models, each in 3 color stories, which I feel makes it very adequate for the luxury collaboration that it is – no need to dilute brand value by overwhelming consumers with too many options. The product case is also a work of art and is similar in shape to the product display table – and we love coherence
RAISING BRAND AWARENESS THROUGH THE COLLABORATION – Gentle Monster obviously gets a boost abroad, but I think Mugler is also getting quite a lot from this collaboration – South Korea is currently the 5th largest luxury market globally and Mugler is not on many people’s radar (the official website lists only two stores in the whole country) and to me the maison’s aesthetic would resonate a lot of with the younger generations; I even overheard one of the Korean clients spelling out M-U-G-L-E-R out loud while typing the name into her phone to look up the brand, which made me smile
SEAMLESS OMNICHANNEL INTEGRATION – up to the highest standard, as always with Gentle Monster – the product name has a little QR code next to it which you can scan to visit the online store, where you can either purchase the product directly or request more information on the product to be delivered to you through the Kakao Talk messenger (which also has a call to action button which can bring you back to the product detail page for purchase)
I think it’s a wonderful moment for Gentle Monster, but also for Mugler – I’m glad the Korean audience has an opportunity to become more familiar with this legendary fashion house. Now I think I need to go and listen to some George Michael… he’d look fabulous in the black ones.
