Introduction: Every Wednesday at precisely 10am a new product from Korean luxury handbag brand vunque is released to an eagerly expectant marketplace. This unique approach is called Vunque Wednesday Drop (VWD). As of today, 6 August, there have been 332 successful VWDs with not a single Wednesday missed since the idiosyncratic launch platform was unveiled in 2018.
Few designers would contemplate let alone maintain such an unrelenting schedule. But vunque Founder Jeong Hey Seok isn’t just any designer. The quietly charismatic creative tour de force’s remarkable career stems from a lifelong love of handbags. Couronne, her first brand, posted a meteoric rise in sales from KRW1.7 billion (US$1.2 million) in 2010, its first full year of trading, to KRW2 billion (US$8.6 million) a year later, simultaneously becoming the top-selling accessory brand at Hyundai Department Store in Seoul, according to The Korea Herald.
Now she is sprinkling more of the same creative and commercial magic dust. In 2018, after two years of meticulous development, Seok unveiled her debut design for vunque on Instagram. It sold out within an hour, a harbinger of what was to come as the brand’s quality, quirkiness and quickfire launch programme combined to make it a hotly anticipated favourite among Korean style enthusiasts.
Seok believes that trends are fleeting, while true style is a timeless and elegant value defined by one’s authentic self. She insists vunque is not driven by short-lived dynamics and what she sees as futile fashion fads, but by enduring values that celebrate individuality and stand the test of time.
The name vunque is inspired by the Italian word ‘ovunque’ meaning ‘anywhere’ and ‘everywhere’. That adage could equally apply to the brand’s international ambitions as The Moodie Davitt Report’s Lara Netherlands discovered during the recent TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition in Singapore.
This exclusive interview features a compelling conversation with the creative minds behind the dynamic Korean handbag brand, vunque CEO & Designer Jeong Hey Seok and Majeria Co Global Business Senior Manager for vunque Chae-Woon Yi. Majeria Co manages vunque’s expansion and business operations.
The Moodie Davitt Report: This May vunque appeared at the TFWA Asia Pacific exhibition. How was the experience?
Chae-Woon Yi: Firstly, it is a great honour and rewarding experience to be featured in The Moodie Davitt Report – the leading media and business intelligence platform of the global travel retail world.
From our participation in such a globally influential event, we were thrilled to meet buyers from around the world. Though we didn’t get much sleep during our preparation for the exhibition, I simply couldn’t contain my excitement and felt a renewed sense of energy.
While it would be ideal to explore partnerships through the opportunities presented there, I am grateful that I already reap a great sense of joy from my current work. We are eagerly looking forward to the next steps.
What drove vunque to exhibit in Singapore?
Chae-Woon Yi: This was vunque’s first time participating in the show. Our primary goal was to present the most popular bags in the South Korean market. Numerous foreigners are visiting our domestic stores, and therefore we hoped the exhibition would provide us with the opportunity to open stores outside of South Korea so that our brand can be easily accessed by our international customers.
vunque is inspired by the principle of ‘Occam’s Razor’ – i.e. if you have two competing ideas to explain the same phenomenon, the simpler one is preferable. What was your inspiration for the brand name and its style?
Jeong Hey Seok: vunque gets its name from the Italian word ‘ovunque’, which means both ‘anywhere’ and ‘everywhere’. It represents that vunque is a brand with a sense of style and life – it is with customers wherever they go.
The philosophical theory behind ‘Occam’s Razor’ aligns with my own belief: ‘simplicity is best’. This is the message I wanted to convey to our customers – that vunque has a simple yet strong identity.
When we were developing the brand, our primary focus was on creating a distinctive signature to capture customers’ attention and ensure instant recognition. This led to the creation of the razor-shaped accessory, which has become synonymous with vunque today.
Given the constant evolution of fashion, how do you plan product development and anticipate consumer response?
Jeong Hey Seok: In my opinion, continuous communication with customers has made vunque what it is today. We have operated the brand with the goal of identifying customers’ needs, using the information obtained when we create and release new products weekly through Vunque Wednesday Drop (VWD).
Through these efforts, we have been able to introduce designs that appeal to individuals’ various styles within a timely manner while maintaining vunque’s core essence and unique identity.
Inclusivity and diversity are important considerations for many consumers today. How does vunque address these aspects in its branding, marketing and product offerings?
Jeong Hey Seok: I can confidently say vunque is at the forefront of diversity. Our VWD has become a sense of pleasure for our customers to the point where they await our new product launches every Wednesday with great anticipation. This platform gives them the option to make a variety of choices and our goal is to continue providing our customers with refreshing, novel designs.
By consistently introducing new items every week, we aim to attract a diverse range of customers who can acquire designs that suit their preferences and truly resonate with who they are as individuals.
Tell us about your current duty-free distribution in South Korea.
Chae-Woon Yi: Currently, vunque is operating in partnership with prominent South Korean duty-free retailers such as Lotte Duty Free, The Shilla Duty Free and Shinsegae Duty Free. We have a total of 22 offline stores, including our main department stores in South Korea.
Reasonable prices through duty-free benefits and easy online purchase accessibility have appealed to those seeking our bags. Due to the Korean Wave (Hallyu) and K-fashion, the brand has progressively gained international popularity with the masses of foreign tourists visiting South Korea.
On 7 September vunque will open a store with Shinsegae Duty Free at Incheon International Airport Duty in Terminal 2 departures.
Looking ahead, we are also considering opening a store at Jeju International Airport with JDC Duty Free to serve the year-round influx of domestic and international travellers visiting the island – a world-class tourist destination.
How do you see travel retail’s potential for expanding vunque’s reach? What challenges and attractions does the channel offer?
Chae-Woon Yi: The major advantage of travel retail is that it allows us to introduce vunque to global markets and showcase our products to a diverse international audience. The channel provides an opportunity to promote our brand’s values, rather than simply focusing on sales.
However, there are also disadvantages – passengers often lack the time to fully engage with our brand in an airport store, which limits our ability to thoroughly convey vunque’s story during their brief visits.
Which locations in the channel are a priority for vunque?
Chae-Woon Yi: Through the TFWA exhibition, we discovered that numerous Chinese fashion enthusiasts are taking interest in vunque bags – even though at that stage we had not yet begun our overseas expansion.
We had the opportunity to participate in a fashion show at the Printemps department store in Paris during May this year.
Our global expansion began on 1 July with an online store in Japan. A launch party for this exciting expansion will take place in Tokyo on 10 September. In the coming months we will commence with full-scale activities, one of which will be a pop-up activation in Osaka’s Hankyu department store from 11 to 17 September.
Our future plans involve expanding to markets which appeal to our international customer base. These include Mainland China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, Singapore, Europe and the Middle East.
Having said that, we are not aiming for numerous stores and high sales figures; we prioritise quality over quantity. It is our belief that consumers will come to recognise vunque for its enduring value. Our goal is to offer classic vunque items that are not just short-term trendy fashion pieces, but rather integral parts of daily life.
What audience profile are you targeting in travel retail?
Chae-Woon Yi: Our current customer base is diverse, with significant representation across all age groups from teenagers to those in their 50s. Our primary target audience is both female and male customers who prioritise self-expression regardless of their age.
Although our initial target audience was females, vunque has recently gained popularity among men as well. Our customers constantly search for individuality and uniqueness, finding satisfaction in standing out. vunque meets these needs by continuously offering distinctive new products.
Since 2018, vunque has launched new products every week through VWD to fulfill our customers’ desire for constant novelty.
Jeong Hey Seok: The brand prioritises individual style over fleeting trends, and we believe that anyone seeking a bag that complements their own sense of style is a potential customer.
How do you plan to bring the heart of Jeong-Hey Seok’s creativity and design concepts through in your expansion, especially in travel retail?
Jeong-Hey Seok: Every season, vunque presents clear concepts through meticulously crafted campaigns. These range from captivating photoshoots to unified store visual merchandising displays, ensuring a cohesive experience across all touchpoints. Our goal is to present new seasonal products through attractive aesthetics, enthralling our customers with each launch.
Chae-Woon Yi: For the upcoming 2024 Fall/Winter season, we are excited to present various fresh seasonal products through original approaches. For our new store at Incheon Airport, vunque will continue to represent K-fashion by offering tourists a delightful shopping experience before their journeys while adding vibrancy to the airport.
Stay tuned for a season filled with innovative designs and compelling narratives, and join us in anticipation of what vunque has in store.
How do you envision the future of vunque, both in terms of growth and its impact on the fashion industry?
Jeong Hey Seok: From a branding standpoint – no matter where we are or what we do – we strive to embody the essence of vunque. We aim to arouse curiosity, build trust and consistently innovate to keep our brand dynamic, engaging and reliable.
Are there any upcoming vunque collections or projects that you’re particularly excited about?
Jeong Hey Seok: I predict that the last quarter of this year will be a significant turning point for vunque. With our customer base growing rapidly, both domestically and in overseas markets, this year marks the beginning of our global expansion.
We will continue to focus on defining the brand’s identity in South Korea, while simultaneously introducing our products to discerning customers worldwide. ✈️
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