Musinsa has opened its first standalone beauty store, introducing 'Pharmacy Beauty' to enhance its competitive edge by combining professional pharmacist consultations with beauty shopping.
On September 10, Musinsa held a media tour in Hongdae, Mapo District, Seoul, unveiling the 'Musinsa Beauty Hongdae' store, which will officially open on September 11. This marks the first independent beauty store following the beauty zone at the 'Musinsa Megastore Seongsu' opened in April.
The store is designed not just as a shopping space but as a destination for customers to discover new brands and products. Kim Yeon-jin, head of the Musinsa Beauty offline team, stated, "Our overarching strategy is 'Next Beauty,' with 'Discovery Channel' as the key concept."
The Musinsa Beauty Hongdae store features an eye-catching pink exterior and spans a total area of 1,262 square meters (approximately 400 pyeong), with over 870 brands and more than 12,000 products available.
The first floor is dedicated to a variety of makeup and fragrance brands, including a 'Brand Highlighting Zone' that showcases brands that are hard to find offline. This area features brands that have gained attention in the global market but are not easily accessible in South Korea.
The second floor focuses on skincare, with products categorized into hair, body, men's, and dental care. This layout allows customers to compare and choose from various brands and products based on their skin concerns and preferences.
The store's layout reflects Musinsa's unique differentiation strategy, with wider aisles to enhance customer flow and a branding space that allows for an immersive brand experience. About 70% of the approximately 600 beauty brands in the store are indie brands.
Another distinguishing feature is the Pharmacy Beauty concept. The Beauty Onnuri Pharmacy on the basement level is a new pharmacy brand tailored to meet beauty and healthcare demands. Unlike typical beauty stores that sell dermatological cosmetics, this pharmacy occupies an entire floor, integrating beauty retail with pharmacy services.
The Beauty Onnuri Pharmacy offers around 270 brands and over 2,000 products, staffed by multiple pharmacists who provide prescription filling and medication consultations. It maintains the core functions of a pharmacy while enhancing its beauty category and professional consultation services.
Kim Yeon-jin explained, "The Beauty Onnuri Pharmacy is characterized by increasing the proportion of cosmetics to about 90%, aiming to create a space where customers can address all their beauty-related concerns in one visit through collaboration with the pharmacy."
However, operations are strictly separated. The Beauty Onnuri Pharmacy will operate based on product curation and consultations by pharmacists, creating synergy between the store and pharmacy within the same space.
Meanwhile, Musinsa plans to open its second standalone beauty store in Seongsu in November and will introduce a combined store with Musinsa Kicks in Jeju.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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