IT IS every child’s dream to collect all the toys we want, to transport ourselves into our favorite storybook, and to dress up in a similar fashion as our favorite cartoon characters. Perhaps these unsatisfied childhood desires are what made the “kidult[1]” market become popular in South Korea over the last decade, with its market exceeding ₩1.6 trillion last year[2]. The Yeonnam area has become a hotspot for the childlike aesthetic, as numerous designer prop shops[3] have established their businesses in the area. Hoping to incite our childhood passions, the walls of these shops are lined with toys, collectibles, makeup, apparel, and stationary of varying themes. 

Merrymonde

   Walking into Merrymonde is like walking into a girl’s dream bedroom—every corner of the shop is full of toy-like cosmetic products displayed in pink trays and stands. The bright-colored tubs of makeup, ornated with sparkles, hearts, and cherries, take the customers to a world where everything looks like a Polly Pocket toy. The shop’s name embodies the sentiment of its brand identity, as Merrymonde’s marketing director Park Jae-eun stated in an interview with The Yonsei Annals that “Merry represents joyfulness and Monde means ‘world’ in French.” This joyful world that Merrymonde creates appeals to those who want a splash of “fun” and “color” in their daily routine, finding happiness in the little details of the brand’s products.

   Park explains that many people can relate to the brand’s “toybox” style because many adults enjoyed makeup toys and games with the same aesthetic as children. According to Park, the brand’s signature design concept centers on pink hearts that represent our dong-sim, a Korean term referring to childlike innocence. Park explained how such childlike styles do not often appear in the mainstream cosmetic market for adults. Customers appreciate how the brand sets itself apart and puts creativity in their product design. While children’s makeup is known for its poor quality, Merrymonde’s products—although close in resemblance—do not fall under this expectation; in fact, their products are vegan, cruelty-free, and have number one “EWG GREEN” ranking[4]. 

   Merrymonde also focuses on how users’ experience can translate as social media content. Park comments, “as our main audience is the MZ generation[5]—who place importance on both practicality and entertainment—our makeup products are not only good quality but are also ‘unique and fun to use.” Considering how the MZ generation’s main outlet of expression is the SNS, Park demonstrated how, for example, their “Love Crush Heart Stick Foundation” seeks to engage their target consumers by having them print heart patterns with the foundation stick on their faces and upload fun selfies on their social media account. Although the products that the brand offers are inspired by a naïve, childlike aesthetic, Merrymonde has successfully identified how the MZ generation uses social media to express their identity and how important kidults regard their individuality.

Location: Recently moved from Yeonnam to Room 101, Bidong, 18, Seocho-daero 23-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul

Opening Hours: Currently temporarily closed due to COVID-19 restrictions, but products are available offline and online in stores like Olive Young and Brandi, as well as their official online store.

Prices: “Cherry Heart Tint” ₩8,900; “Love Crush Heart Stick Foundation” ₩26,000

Chamtopia

   Chamtopia challenges the view that adults must “grow up” and discard their love for stuffed animals. Crammed into every corner of the store, Chamtopia boasts an impressive array of toys to attract those passing by. Though the store is relatively small, they carry a collection that ranges from barbies, Disney dolls, and Pixar action figures. Chamtopia’s owner, Lee Chae-min, explained to the Annals that she started her business as an “avid collector and lover of vintage dolls.” Her interest in collecting toys started as a child, just like most customers who visit Chamtopia. Though she started her hobby as a child, Chamtopia is not a typical toy store. The products mainly target adults as most of the vintage stuffed doll collection is high quality, expensive, and handmade.

   The appeal of Chamtopia is that adults can freely spend their money on things they could not buy as a kid. Lee explained, “As an elementary school student, I was obsessed with collecting special ball-jointed dolls, but I had to use my own allowance to develop my collection.” This passion for collecting toys motivated Lee to set up her own store and contribute to the growing kidult community. According to Kang Seo-rin (Soph., UIC, Nano Science & Engineering), an avid fan of the kidult aesthetic, the store had “dumped all the cutest dolls from [her] childhood in one small space.” She expressed her satisfaction in simply seeing and admiring all the collectible toys, as the store, in a way, fulfilled her seemingly impossible dream of owning every doll she could imagine. Kang explained that the cluttered interior of the store presented a unique style and gave off an impression that one was stepping into an actual bedroom of sorts, thus differentiating itself from other toy shops. 

Location: Room 102, 7, Wowsan-ro 27-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul

Opening Hours: 14:00-21:00

Prices: Regular size dolls are around ₩15,000 to ₩50,000, but the vintage mint-in  barbies are around ₩70,000

Neonmoon

   Neonmoon is a “fashion hub” for kidults who want to emulate the clothing from their favorite childhood anime, cartoon, manga, and other media content from the 1980s and 1990s[6]. The storekeeper explained that the brand paid close attention to how they set up their shop to offer a complete “dress-up” experience for the customers who visit the store: Neonmoon’s interior closely resembles a doll’s dressing room with its bright-pink walls, checkered floors, and toy-like hangers and mirrors. Neonmoon explains that this is an integral part of their marketing since customers trying out clothes, taking photos, and sharing them on their social media all count towards advertising their brand and bringing attention to the kidult community. 

   The brand creatively incorporates the kidult aesthetic across their different clothing lines, taking inspiration from various vintage children’s media that adults nowadays relate to[7]. Their signature “city otaku” clothing line, for example, was inspired by the apparel of popular anime characters[8]. Neonmoon’s Designer & Creative Director Lee So-so stated in her Instagram that she started “city otaku” as a personal project in 2018. Although it started as a project outside of Neonmoon, Lee decided to officially launch this line because she wished to offer the brand’s customers the same sense of nostalgia she had with her love for anime characters as a child. The “city otaku” line seeks to achieve this by presenting products such as the overalls designed to resemble the signature outfit worn by a character in popular 1990s anime, Sailor Moon. Additionally, the stationery and prop items in the “city otaku” line center on well-loved animes that feature cat characters like the cat robot Doraemon, Sanrio character Hello Kitty, or the popular Pokémon anime series mascot Meowth. Neonmoon's combined focus on the kidult aesthetic and fashion trends from the 1980s and 1990s children's media adds a sense of youthfulness to contemporary designer fashion.

Location: 145, Wowsan-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul

Opening Hours: 14:00-20:00

Prices: The “City Otaku” Overalls are ₩82,000, and t-shirts are around ₩32,000

[1] Kidult: A term for an adult who has childish tastes and interests

[2] Korea JoongAng Daily

[3] Designer Prop Shops: Themed shops that sell various goods.

[4] EWG Green: Products that meet international regulations for sustainability and safety 

[5] MZ Generation: Age group referring to people in their teens to late 30s

[6] Elle

[7] Inews24

[8] Otakus: The Japanese word used internationally to describe people with a defined taste and interest in a certain aesthetic or consumable content.