It’s a fall evening in Seoul, and a small troupe of Korean dancers dressed in traditional black-and-white clothing is rolling brass gongs and chanting at the entrance to Wongmi’s sleek new flagship. The crowd follows the procession through the imposing front doors and upstairs to a large space, where on a table, surrounded by pyramids of glittering precimons, sits an offering of a pig’s head.
As the music crescendos, a line of guests present envelopes of money, which they place into the swine’s open mouth before bowing. A common ritual in Korea Gosait is placed to clear bad vibrations and bring good luck in new ventures. The opportunity is timely: this is Wooingmi’s first standalone store in Seoul, and the beginning of a retail strategy betting on the label.
South Korea’s first global menswear brand
The brand’s owner and founder, Yangmi Wu, knows that fortune is not easy. A cool and collected 66-year-old, known in the industry as “Madame Vu,” she moves through the crowd in a sharply tailored black suit and large sunnies. As CEO of Solid Corporation, which owns Wooyoungmi and its more conservative sibling, Solid Homme, she is in charge of South Korea’s most powerful fashion house.
Founded in 1998 as Korea’s first designer menswear brand, Solid Home paved the way for Wooingmi, which launched in 2002 and became the first Korean label to show at Paris Fashion Week. The brand operates two stores in Paris, sells through 70 stockists in 24 countries, and employs 150 people globally. In 2024, Solid Corporation reported revenue of $72 million, and Wooingmi’s sales have shown consistent annual growth of approximately 10% to 20% over the past few years.
Located in Ativan, formerly home to a US Army barracks and now a cosmopolitan enclave, the new store location is part of a broader retail strategy to assert influence at home. “During the pandemic, I realized the need to have a place where you can physically and directly engage with consumers,” says Madam Wu. Although Wooingmi shares space with Solid Homme at the aforementioned Seoul store, this is the first time the label (which also sells womenswear) will be traded alone in Seoul. Madame Wu sees this as an opportunity for the brand to push its identity.
