OLIVE YOUNG Opens Central Myeongdong Town, a Global K-Beauty Shopping Destination

press release

OLIVE YOUNG Opens Central Myeongdong Town, a Global K-Beauty Shopping Destination

2026.03.26

6min

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On October 26, CJ OLIVE YOUNG opened OLIVE YOUNG Central Myeongdong Town in Seoul, a three-floor store spanning approximately 3,140 square meters and offering about 1,000 brands and 15,000 products. Designed for international customers, it features the expanded “MASKS LIBRARY,” beauty devices and derma cosmetics, 22 staffed checkout counters, and multilingual services.

A colorful Olive Young store interior with escalators, stairs and pink and green lighting.

Spanning three floors and approximately 3,140 square meters, Central Myeongdong Town is the second-largest OLIVE YOUNG store in Korea after OLIVE YOUNG N Seongsu. While OLIVE YOUNG N Seongsu is designed as an innovation-focused store that leads the way in differentiated customer experiences, Central Myeongdong Town is a global-focused location built around a product assortment and shopping environment tailored to the needs of international customers.

Myeongdong is one of Seoul’s most prominent shopping districts for international visitors. According to the Korea Tourism Organization, approximately 4.5 million international visitors visited Myeongdong in the first half of 2025, the highest figure among Seoul’s major shopping districts. As cosmetics are the most popular shopping category among international tourists, Myeongdong is also considered a key destination for K-beauty shoppers. In fact, OLIVE YOUNG Myeongdong Town recorded the highest sales among all OLIVE YOUNG stores last year, with international customers accounting for approximately 95% of its sales. Reflecting this strong demand, Central Myeongdong Town has been designed to help international customers discover and experience K-beauty more intuitively and comprehensively.

A brightly lit cosmetics store displays skincare products on shelves beneath a “MASKS LIBRARY” sign.

Bringing K-beauty together under one roof with the largest assortment of brands and products

OLIVE YOUNG Central Myeongdong Town features approximately 1,000 brands and 15,000 products, allowing customers to explore a wide range of K-beauty in one place. With the largest product assortment of any OLIVE YOUNG store, the location is designed to showcase both the breadth and depth of Korea’s beauty offerings.

The store also places a particular focus on categories that are popular among international customers. The “MASKS LIBRARY” presents sheet masks alongside a wide range of other formats, including modeling masks and bubble masks, with products curated by skin type and function to make it easier for customers to compare and explore their options. Covering more than 10 times the display space typically allocated to masks at OLIVE YOUNG Town stores, the section features approximately 800 products, giving customers greater opportunity to discover products and find the ones that best suit their needs.

The store also brings together beauty devices and derma cosmetics in response to growing demand for post-treatment care associated with the rise in medical tourism. The derma cosmetics assortment places a greater emphasis on Korean brands, highlighting the strength and diversity of K-derma cosmetics.

To create a shopping environment tailored to international customers, OLIVE YOUNG has further enhanced and applied operational expertise accumulated across 138 stores in major tourist shopping districts. The store is designed to make shopping more convenient and efficient by improving payment processes, language accessibility and product discovery.

The checkout experience has been optimized with the shopping patterns of customers who frequently make bulk purchases in mind. The store features 22 staffed checkout counters, the largest number at any OLIVE YOUNG location, and uses analysis of customer movement throughout the checkout process to improve the flow from product scanning and payment to packaging and reduce checkout times.

Services designed to reduce language barriers have also been expanded. Employees who can assist customers in English, Chinese or Japanese wear corresponding national flag badges, making it easier for customers to identify staff who can assist them. Multilingual signage for tax refunds and payment methods has also been expanded throughout the store.

Through Central Myeongdong Town, OLIVE YOUNG plans to further strengthen the K-beauty shopping experience in Myeongdong and develop the store into a key destination where global customers can discover and enjoy K-beauty in a more intuitive way. OLIVE YOUNG also plans to apply the operational insights and expertise gained from Central Myeongdong Town to its stores in other global markets.

“We expect the differentiated K-beauty shopping experience at Central Myeongdong Town to encourage customers to continue purchasing K-beauty products in their home markets, ultimately creating a virtuous cycle that contributes to the growth of the K-beauty industry,” said an OLIVE YOUNG representative. “As Korea’s leading K-beauty platform, we will continue to enhance and expand services that deliver the shopping experiences customers are looking for.”

CJ OLIVE YOUNG has opened OLIVE YOUNG Central Myeongdong Town on October 26 in Myeongdong, Seoul, bringing together its K-beauty curation expertise and experience operating stores tailored to international customers. Spanning three floors and approximately 3,140 square meters, Central Myeongdong Town is the second-largest OLIVE YOUNG store in Korea after OLIVE YOUNG N Seongsu. While OLIVE YOUNG N Seongsu is designed as an innovation-focused store that leads the way in differentiated customer experiences, Central Myeongdong Town is a global-focused location built around a product assortment and shopping environment tailored to the needs of international customers. Myeongdong is one of Seoul’s most prominent shopping districts for international visitors. According to the Korea Tourism Organization, approximately 4.5 million international visitors visited Myeongdong in the first half of 2025, the highest figure among Seoul’s major shopping districts. As cosmetics are the most popular shopping category among international tourists, Myeongdong is also considered a key destination for K-beauty shoppers. In fact, OLIVE YOUNG Myeongdong Town recorded the highest sales among all OLIVE YOUNG stores last year, with international customers accounting for approximately 95% of its sales. Reflecting this strong demand, Central Myeongdong Town has been designed to help international customers discover and experience K-beauty more intuitively and comprehensively. Bringing K-beauty together under one roof with the largest assortment of brands and products OLIVE YOUNG Central Myeongdong Town features approximately 1,000 brands and 15,000 products, allowing customers to explore a wide range of K-beauty in one place. With the largest product assortment of any OLIVE YOUNG store, the location is designed to showcase both the breadth and depth of Korea’s beauty offerings. The store also places a particular focus on categories that are popular among international customers. The “MASKS LIBRARY” presents sheet masks alongside a wide range of other formats, including modeling masks and bubble masks, with products curated by skin type and function to make it easier for customers to compare and explore their options. Covering more than 10 times the display space typically allocated to masks at OLIVE YOUNG Town stores, the section features approximately 800 products, giving customers greater opportunity to discover products and find the ones that best suit their needs. The store also brings together beauty devices and derma cosmetics in response to growing demand for post-treatment care associated with the rise in medical tourism. The derma cosmetics assortment places a greater emphasis on Korean brands, highlighting the strength and diversity of K-derma cosmetics. To create a shopping environment tailored to international customers, OLIVE YOUNG has further enhanced and applied operational expertise accumulated across 138 stores in major tourist shopping districts. The store is designed to make shopping more convenient and efficient by improving payment processes, language accessibility and product discovery. The checkout experience has been optimized with the shopping patterns of customers who frequently make bulk purchases in mind. The store features 22 staffed checkout counters, the largest number at any OLIVE YOUNG location, and uses analysis of customer movement throughout the checkout process to improve the flow from product scanning and payment to packaging and reduce checkout times. Services designed to reduce language barriers have also been expanded. Employees who can assist customers in English, Chinese or Japanese wear corresponding national flag badges, making it easier for customers to identify staff who can assist them. Multilingual signage for tax refunds and payment methods has also been expanded throughout the store. Through Central Myeongdong Town, OLIVE YOUNG plans to further strengthen the K-beauty shopping experience in Myeongdong and develop the store into a key destination where global customers can discover and enjoy K-beauty in a more intuitive way. OLIVE YOUNG also plans to apply the operational insights and expertise gained from Central Myeongdong Town to its stores in other global markets. “We expect the differentiated K-beauty shopping experience at Central Myeongdong Town to encourage customers to continue purchasing K-beauty products in their home markets, ultimately creating a virtuous cycle that contributes to the growth of the K-beauty industry,” said an OLIVE YOUNG representative. “As Korea’s leading K-beauty platform, we will continue to enhance and expand services that deliver the shopping experiences customers are looking for.”