It has become fashionable for fashion followers and lovers to wake up almost daily to the news that international fashion brands and houses have chosen ambassadors from South Korean celebrities, especially K-pop singers and K-pop music.

This marketing strategy relies on the global fashion industry recently, after the Asian market has become the largest purchasing power in the world, especially South Korea, whose consumers compete for the acquisition of fashion, leather and precious and high-end jewelry pieces every season.

Figures reported by CNBC showed that South Korea's total spending on luxury goods grew by about 24 percent to reach $16.8 billion in 2022.

The Asian market has become the world's largest purchasing power (Reuters)

Fashion houses compete for BTS

Fashion houses have less reliance on ambassadors of Hollywood celebrities who have dominated fashion advertising campaigns for more than 7 decades, and all their focus has become on South Korean stars who are guaranteed to break into the Asian, Arab and European markets alike thanks to the great fame that Korean pop bands have achieved among Gen Z (born in the mid-nineties to 2012) from around the world.

Louis Vuitton was the first to turn to South Korean stars after Virgil Abloh, artistic director of the Maison's menswear line, chose members of the BTS singing group to be the brand's ambassadors for 2021.

This came after the great success of the singing group with their rival French brand "Dior", who designed the team's costumes that they appeared in their "Love Yourself" tour in 2019.

BTS star JaHope (Getty Images)

The partnership with Louis Vuitton began with the team presenting the Men's Fall/Winter 2021 men's campaign filmed in Seoul, Korea. At the time, the campaign topped all the decorations on social media and achieved a state of economic popularity for the house, which was suffering in light of the outbreak of the Corona virus.

The owners of "Fake Love" did not abandon Louis Vuitton designs in every appearance until their partnership with the Maison ended earlier this year.

However, that did not stop LVMH, the house's owner, from hiring one BTS member, Jhope, in January 2023.

The French house's women's line followed suit after women's artistic director Nicolas Gesquière selected New Jeans star Hayen to be among the Maison's ambassadors in December 2022.

This marketing plan was one of the reasons why Louis Vuitton topped the list of the most expensive luxury brands in the world with a value of more than $ 124 billion by the end of 2022.

BTS store selling K-pop international clothing and accessories for sale in New York (Reuters)

As for the Dior fashion house, which owns its largest store ever in South Korea, the creative director of the women's fashion line, Maria Grazia, has previously chosen to present the fall 2022 collection for the first time in Seoul in the presence of her Korean ambassadors, led by the star of the band "Black Pink" "Jesso", who was the secret to the increase in the house's profits there to 75% compared to 2021.

This is due to the wide popularity that Jesso has among the new generation, who have insisted on her approach in her choices for her looks, which the star of the song "Kill That Love" posts on Instagram, through which she has more than 75 million followers.

Jesso has become the pampered daughter of the fashion industry, having previously collaborated with the prestigious Cartier Jewellery House in addition to her previous partnership with Saint Laurent.

Dior collaborated with Korean star Jimin, a member of the BTS singing group, who participated in the publicity campaign for the men's collection for the spring/summer 2024 season.