Seoul Bund prides itself on being a place “where the East Asian treasures bond.” Seoul Bund unearths and sells living products by companies or designers in Korea, China, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong. It has brought together countries that share a similar sense of aesthetics. “Think of it this way: how many people would be able to distinguish styles of different countries in Northern Europe from one another? And there aren’t that many people in Europe or North America who can tell the difference between styles in different Asian countries,” Park said. Thus, he decided it’d be better off to bring these East Asian brands together and he started selling quality products from the five aforementioned countries.
So how does Seoul Bund determine what constitutes “treasure” of East Asia? There are major categories such as aesthetic impressions and productivity, and there are also 51 more detailed criteria. Products are selected based on scores awarded in accordance with Seoul Bund’s own guidelines. In terms of Seoul Bund’s identity, products that have been there since Day 1 are the most important for Park. They form the core of the brand. For instance, Jia of Taiwan has been with Seoul Bund from its start. Jia makes products that are at once practical and beautiful, and they helped paint a picture on the state of living design in its country at the time. And products that are carefully selected by Seoul Bund have earned trust of consumers. In the early days, 90 percent of brands didn’t respond when Seoul Bund approached them about putting their goods on sale in Korea. Now, brands have to wait at least three months to get in. Seoul Bund has won over consumers and brands alike.

When you’re searching for a gift or craftwork that’s distinctively Korean, you could never go wrong at Seoul Bund. It can serve as your curator, but it will also make some excellent products in collaboration with master craftsmen or designers. Seoul Bund’s first production is brass cutlery set ‘La Lune’ from ‘Seoul Bund Hwa’ line, a series of products inspired by the Korean tradition with a contemporary touch. The project connected a master craftsman who had been concentrating on production and a designer who wanted to create more practical value. Brassware artisan Lee Jong-oh and designer Song Seung-yong worked together for La Lune. And since it was the first project of its kind, there were challenges. “Not everyone was cooperative in the planning stages of La Lune. While searching for our brassware artisan, we were rejected by five places before meeting Lee Jong-oh,” Park said. “La Lune was introduced on a popular web portal site, and I remember reading a comment that read, ‘This is not tradition.’ We had a difficult start, but other brands have since come up with similar items. It has all expanded the brassware market, and I felt really proud.” La Lune is one of Seoul Bund’s signature products. Seoul Bund Hwa has also made hanbok-inspired apron ‘ATO’ and table mat with patterns of chaekgado (paintings of books and associated objects).

Here’s our interview with Seoul Bund CEO Park Chan-ho, a trailblazer in the Korean living design market with a brilliant vision and entrepreneurship that satisfies consumer tastes and needs.

Borne out of some wild imagination? Selling like a hot cakes? Or showing the distinctive Korean beauty? Pick any of these three and you’ll be happy that you did.