Bean Pole

Bean Pole is a South Korean fashion brand owned by Samsung C&T Corporation. It produces seven sub-brands, including Bean Pole Men, Bean Pole Ladies and Bean Pole Kids; an accessories line, Bean Pole Accessory; a golf wear brand, Bean Pole Golf; and a sports fashion/equipment brand, Bean Pole Sports.[1] Towards the end of 2019 they added 890311 to their list of sub-brands.[2]

Background

Bean Pole was founded in 1989 by Cheil Industries (now merged into Samsung C&T Corporation). At the time, it was marketed as a "neo-contemporary total fashion brand" for men aged 25-35.[3] In 1993, it enacted a no sales policy to strengthen consumer trust for domestic brands, which at the time were mid-to-low priced.[4] From its launch to 1996, it recorded an average yearly sales growth of 30%,[5] and by 2000 it had the highest market share out of all of the country's "traditional casual" brands.[6] Even throughout a surge of casual brands in the 1990s, Bean Pole saw continued success, which was attributed to its high quality clothing and fulfillment of customer needs.[6][7][8] However, it, and other "masstige" (a combination of the words "mass" and "prestige") brands began to decline with the rise of fast fashion and designer clothing.[9]

In 2019, Bean Pole announced that it would undergo a rebrand for its 30th anniversary, to be shown in the 2020 spring/summer season. The sub-brand 890311 was founded, which featured items inspired by "the industrialization period of the 1960s and 1970s when Western culture began to permeate Korean society."[9] The company also expressed plans to expand into foreign markets like Vietnam and North America.[10]

Stores

A flagship store was opened in Myeong-dong, Seoul, in 2003, the first for a South Korean brand.[12][13] The four-floor building featured shops for its Bean Pole Jeans, Ladies, Golf, Homme, and Kids brands.[14][15] The choice to open a flagship store, as said by company CEO Won Jong-woon, was because "department stores are divided into men's and women's clothing and children's clothing floors, so it is difficult to show the entire product with a consistent image. With this Bean Pole Chungmuro standalone store, one-stop shopping has become possible."[13] A second flagship store was opened in Daegu in 2009.[16]

Partnerships and collaborations

Bean Pole have collaborated with foreign designers since 2010. That year, Scott Steinberg, designer for Band of Outsiders, joined with the brand to create a capsule collection.[17][18][19] For the spring/summer season of 2011, Bean Pole worked with English designer Kim Jones;[20][21] their collaboration continued through the fall/winter season.[22][23] Following their collaborations with Jones, Bean Pole worked with then-Hermès womenswear director Christophe Lemaire to create the menswear line Novö.[24][25]

See also

• Contemporary culture of South Korea
• Foreign celebrity advertising