(Yicai) Dec. 15 -- Musinsa, a leading South Korean fashion retailer, has opened its first overseas flagship outlet in Shanghai, with plans to expand to multiple Chinese cities over the next five years.

The Musinsa Standard Shanghai is located on major shopping street Huaihai Road, spanning two floors and an area of about 1,421 square meters, the Seoul-based company announced yesterday. It is the fifth-largest Musinsa shop worldwide, it added.

Starting in 2001 as a sneaker community, Musinsa gradually evolved into an online magazine before expanding into e-commerce and ultimately building an integrated online and offline fashion platform. Sales to Chinese clients at its stores in South Korea surged in the first half of this year, with most such buyers aged 10 to 29, Yicai learned.

Musinsa plans to open 100 stores in the Chinese market by 2030, centering on Shanghai while considering other cities, a relevant person in charge at the company told Yicai.

Musinsa will continue to optimize its localization in logistics, distribution, and store operations, a company representative said to Yicai. It plans to develop product lines that align with Chinese fashion trends and consumer preferences based on overall sales data, the person noted, adding that it will open online channels on platforms including TikTok's sister app Douyin, Xiaohongshu, and Taobao.

In 2019, Musinsa secured an investment from China's HongShan Capital, with the firm launching its country development strategy this year, Yicai learned. In August, it joined hands with Anta Sports Products to set up the Musinsa China joint venture to lead the brand's development in the Chinese market.

Musinsa China opened a flagship store on Alibaba Group Holding's e-marketplace Tmall in September.

Brick-and-mortar stores are under pressure due to high rents, labor costs, and the impact of e-commerce, industry analysts pointed out. Musinsa's high-profile expansion of shops in China is linked to its capital operations, such as the investment from HongShan and the partnership with Anta, they noted.

While expanding physical stores is undoubtedly costly, Musinsa has e-commerce in its DNA, so using such outlets as showrooms and online sites for sales has promising prospects, the insiders said. The key to success will lie in its products' value for money, its appeal to young consumers, and cost-to-revenue balance, they added.

Editor: Martin Kadiev