Thoughts on Korean Business by Don Southerton

For Immediate Release November 24, 2010 New York, Southern California, Denver, Stockholm and Seoul, South Korea The NATORI Company , which for more than 30 years has been a leading luxury company in the United States, plans to expand its brand to Korea and the Asia-Pacific region. Natori, one of the most important resources for Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, and Bloomingdale’s, has expanded from lingerie, bras and sleepwear to ready-to- wear, eyewear, fragrance, and home accessories.  Additionally, the company has launched Josie, a contemporary lingerie collection. The Natori Company is now searching for the right retail partner in Korea to achieve a similar success in Korea that the firm has enjoyed in the US. Josie Natori said, “While our name and brand recognition is very high in Korea and the entire Asia- Pacific region, we have had extremely limited distribution in this region.  The time seems very right to launch an expansion, starting with Korea.” To f...

We've been following Korea's up market trends for a number of years. It manifests in their move in cars, fashions, electronics, food, and coffee. This JoongAng Daily article Profiling Lotte’s creme de la creme looks at VVIP shoppers. Customers view a VVIP-only fashion show at Lotte Department Store’s Avenuel, a high-end section of the chain, early this year. Provided by the company Imagine a customer at your nearby department store - let’s call her Mrs. Kim. She is in her early 50s, lives in the affluent Gangnam area of southern Seoul and visits department stores five times a week. Before each visit, she even calls up a store clerk to inform of her impending arrival. She gets ideas for her next purchases from luxury magazines that are exclusively sent to select customers, and store clerks incessantly send pictures of newly arrived items to her mobile phone. If Mrs. Kim sees something she likes, she calls ahead - and when she visits the department store, the items are arran...

Our sister website Korea Business Central , an online community focused in doing business in Korea is now featuring an interview with Dr. Linda Myers. The Korea Business Interview Series: " Working at the Top in SK Group: An Insider's Story" with Dr. Linda Myers , who was "inpatriated" to Seoul to raise global mindsets, lead global talent management, develop global policies and practices, and help accelerate globalization of the SK Group. She previously earned her masters and doctoral degrees from Harvard University. CLICK HERE to access podcast. Questions? Comments?