"Grandma" floral vests are stirring up winter in Korea

The floral quilted vest, long considered an outdated "grandmother" style item in Korea - often called a "kimjang vest" because older women used to wear it when making kimchi for winter - is suddenly being sought after by younger consumers as a winter fashion item.

According to Naver Data Lab's search trends on November 18, searches for these quilted vests and related keywords such as "floral vest" among users aged 19 to 34 hit an all-time high of 100 the day before.

Naver set the highest search volume value at 100 on a 100-point scale to represent relative change. After reaching 96 in December 2024 and dropping to 0, interest began to rise again in mid-October this year.

Search analytics platform BlackKiwi also reports that searches for this vest have increased nearly sevenfold this month – 699.85% – compared to last month.

Users in their 20s and 30s accounted for nearly half of all searches, at 13.2% and 36% respectively, while women accounted for 84.3%.

Analysts say the resurgence is linked to a rise in interest in "choncance," a trend in which young people seek rural-themed relaxation, and "halmaenial," a nostalgic fashion style of their grandmothers.

As more and more people adopt these retro influences, the quilted floral vest – once associated with elderly rural housewives preparing kimchi for winter storage – has reemerged as a stylish and humorous statement.

Rural tourism has also grown: According to an October 29 report by the Rural Development Administration, 43.8% of South Koreans said they had experienced rural tourism, up from 35.2% in 2022.

The trend was further fueled after global K-pop stars like BLACKPINK's Jennie and aespa's Karina shared photos of themselves wearing the vest on social media, attracting the attention of young fans.

With the growing boom, related items have climbed to the top selling positions on major online shopping platforms.

On apps popular with women in their 20s, including Zigzag and Ably, quilted vests with floral prints consistently rank as bestsellers, with prices ranging from 5,000 won ($3.85) to 40,000 won.

The trend has even spread to pet fashion. On October 22, Korean lingerie brand BYC teamed up with pet clothing brand Gaeryas to launch a dog-sized version of the quilted vest, drawing considerable attention at a pop-up event at Coex in southern Seoul.

However, many people think that a young and beautiful girl wearing an "old lady" outfit makes her look even cuter.

“Youth itself is an advantage, when you are young, you can wear anything and still look reasonable.” Therefore, it is not surprising that this trend is so popular with many young people./.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/ao-gile-hoa-ba-ngoai-dang-khuay-dao-mua-dong-tai-han-quoc-post1080190.vnp