{"id":79031,"date":"2026-07-08T14:32:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T14:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/79031\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T14:32:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T14:32:08","slug":"the-hyundai-launches-experimental-e-commerce-platform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/79031\/","title":{"rendered":"The Hyundai Launches Experimental E-commerce Platform\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tDespite South Korea<\/a>\u2019s ultra-fast delivery e-commerce<\/a> landscape and cut-throat price competition, The Hyundai<\/a>, a major department store chain in the market, has launched an e-commerce<\/a> platform designed to trigger new behavior online.<\/p>\n

\n\tDubbed The Hyundai Hi, the app was conceived by Base Design, a global creative agency that has created digital experiences and visual identities for Dior, Fondation Louis Vuitton, Grand Palais, Uniqlo, MoMA<\/a>\u2019s Design Store and more.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"The<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tThe Hyundai Hi<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe brief from The Hyundai was to rethink e-commerce from the ground up,\u201d said Mirek Nisenbaum, digital director and partner at Base Design.<\/p>\n

\n\tDescribing the app as an ecosystem for collecting and expressing taste, Nisenbaum said the design of the app also reimagines \u201chow department stores can extend their moat in a future where traditional e\u2011commerce is being fundamentally redefined.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor Min Lew, partner at Base Design, who in 2021 led the naming and creation of The Hyundai\u2019s brand, the app\u2019s focus on curation aims to break free of the local e-commerce market\u2019s monotonous focus on rankings and curated lists, often viewed as a shorthand for \u201cthe best,\u201d according to Lew.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHyundai Hi was intentionally built as an alternative to that convention,\u201d Lew explained. \u201cThis philosophy shaped every level of the platform. It began with the name Hi itself, an open, conversational invitation, and extended through playful interactive design, including speech bubbles and gems throughout the experience,\u201d Lew said.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt informed new curation models such as emerging brand spotlights, Icon Shop and MeSpace, where trusted tastemakers inspire others through personal recommendations rather than algorithmic rankings,\u201d Lew added.<\/p>\n

\n\tAfter its soft launch almost nine weeks ago, The Hyundai Hi has generated more than 54 billion South Korean won, or around $35.3 million, in gross merchandise value, up 43.5 percent year-over-year compared to the retailer\u2019s former official online store, based on new data released by The Hyundai.<\/p>\n

\n\tRegistered users increased almost 560 percent compared with the same time last year, while casual visitor count increased more than 320 percent to 9.6 million. Overall traffic rose more than 300 percent to 18.5 million clicks, the retailer said.<\/p>\n

\n\tPresented as a semi-gamified experience, users are first greeted with a landing page where they can view the day\u2019s featured offerings and collect \u201cgems,\u201d or product recommendations based on the store\u2019s integrated data system, which offers an eclectic mix of fashion, beauty, home goods and even fresh produce, which are also sometimes livestreamed.<\/p>\n

\n\tIts clean visual format, which displays products in a Pinterest-like two-column waterfall setting, enables a quick \u201csaved item\u201d function in lieu of an \u201cadd to cart\u201d feature via a small semi-3D star-shaped button on the top-right corner of the product.<\/p>\n

\n\tWith message bubbles, editorial content and user-generated content dispersed throughout the homepage, visitors are encouraged to explore the platform\u2019s 3,000 brands and find like-minded users.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe platform also enlisted a network of \u201cIcons\u201d \u2014 now 27 and growing \u2014 such as the actress Lee Yi-Dam, model Hong Tae Jun and writer Lee Seula, to set up profiles on the platform and offer recommendations and shopping edits.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tA screenshot of model Hong Tae Jun\u2019s icon page on the app.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy<\/p>\n

\n\tFurther blurring the boundaries between retail, entertainment and culture, The Hyundai Hi is investing in original content that includes the fashion stylist survival competition show \u201cKill It,\u201d which is airing on TVN, a local cable TV network.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn addition, editorial collaborations span the globe \u2014 fresh content focused on Scandinavian <\/a>design will explore lifestyle, food and travel topics.<\/p>\n

\n\tTo further encapsulate the platform\u2019s playful attitude, Base Design created a catchy slogan, \u201cHi hi,\u201d for the app, which appears on billboards and in digital campaigns, as well as on its shipping cartons.<\/p>\n

\n\tFraming the app as a foundation for how the legacy retailer envisions the future of retail, Youngshin Jang, platform strategy leader at The Hyundai, said the platform will enable customers to experience the department store \u201cin a new way,\u201d and bring about \u201ca discovery, inspiration and cultural connection that customers associate with our stores into a digital environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cBy combining curated brands with influential voices and original content, we\u2019re creating a platform where people can explore their tastes, be inspired by new ideas, and engage with The Hyundai wherever they are,\u201d Jang added.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Hyundai Hi brings together the retailer\u2019s former official online platform, thehyundai.com, and its food and home goods platform. In addition, a conversational curation service powered by its proprietary AI shopping assistant \u201cHeydi\u201d can be found on the app.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn the back of a buoyant stock market and surging South Korean won-dollar exchange rate, the South Korean market is entering a new phase of luxury customer acquisition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tAccording to NH Investment & Securities\u2019 recent forecast, all three major department store operators in South Korea<\/a>, including Lotte, Shinsegae and Hyundai, are set to post record-breaking results for the second quarter of this year.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLuxury goods are showing the highest growth rate among department store categories, with sales growth of more than 30 percent year-on-year,\u201d Joo Young-hoon, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities, told local media.<\/p>\n

\n\tFueled by inbound tourism, which is expected to grow 17.6 percent to 22 million this year, the three department stores are expected to generate more than 3 trillion South Korean won, or $1.9 billion, in sales this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Despite South Korea\u2019s ultra-fast delivery e-commerce landscape and cut-throat price competition, The Hyundai, a major department store chain…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":79032,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[997,295,294,293,33],"class_list":["post-79031","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-hyundai","tag-e-commerce","tag-hyundai","tag-hyundai-group","tag-hyundai-motor-group","tag-south-korea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79031","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79031"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79031\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79032"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79031"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79031"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79031"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}