[NE Coffee Chat] Musee "Sought by Karina and Han Sohee...Aiming to Become a Centuries-Old Korean Fashion House"

Aiming for KRW 23 Billion in Sales by 2029... Expanding into Menswear, Fragrance, and Beauty
Collaborating with Giordano to Launch in 146 Asian Stores Next Year
Developing a Fashion-Specialized AI System... Also Targeting Selection for the TIPS Program

"There are many global fashion houses in Europe with over a century of history, but why isn’t there one in Korea?"

On October 1, Juhyun Lee, CEO of MUSEE, explained the motivation behind founding her company with these words. In Europe, there are numerous luxury brands like Gucci, Chanel, and Prada that have maintained their legacy for generations. Lee remarked, "I found it regrettable that it’s hard to find such brands originating in Korea," expressing her ambition, "I want to create a global fashion house that truly represents Korea."

Before starting her own company, Lee studied fashion design in France and gained experience at Handsome, Shinsegae International, and Lotte GFR. After leaving her corporate job and registering as a sole proprietor, she launched her women’s fashion brand, Musee. When the brand achieved KRW 50 million in sales in its first month and received a positive market response, she incorporated it in 2023 and officially expanded her business.

Juhyun Lee, CEO of Muze. Muze

Instead of following short-term trends, Musee focuses on designs that withstand the test of time and can be worn again and again. The brand is also known for utilizing high-quality materials such as cashmere, wool, and angora. Thanks to this approach, the cumulative sales and units sold of over 20 "best core items" have reached KRW 8.3 billion and 30,000 pieces, respectively. On average, each product has gone through more than 10 reorders. Musee has also benefited from frequent requests for sponsorships from stylists working with celebrities, even without spending additional money on marketing. As a result, Musee’s products have been worn by well-known celebrities including Karina, Suzy, and Han So-hee, according to Lee.

Musee’s sales targets are highly ambitious. While its revenue goal for this year is KRW 2.3 billion, it aims for KRW 5 billion next year, KRW 11 billion in 2028, and KRW 23 billion in 2029, planning to achieve close to double growth year-on-year. Lee considers next year’s collaboration with Giordano’s Hong Kong headquarters as the starting point for this growth trajectory. Beginning with the 2027 Spring·Summer (SS) season, Musee plans to introduce collaborative products in 146 major stores across Asia, including Korea, and then expand the sales regions and volumes. The brand seeks to prove its design competitiveness in international markets.

Product line expansion is also in progress. Through the Giordano collaboration, Musee plans to introduce a menswear line called "Le Musee Homme," and then gradually broaden its business into fragrances ("Musee Fragrance"), activewear ("Musee Active"), and cosmetics ("Musee Beauty").

Joo Hyun Lee, CEO of Muse, is preparing for the Fall/Winter season photo shoot in Berlin, Germany with models and stylists. Muse

Leveraging its experience in fashion brand management, Musee is also branching out into artificial intelligence (AI). The company is currently developing a "fashion-specialized AI operation system" that supports work such as demand forecasting, inventory management, online and offline customer management, and design, as well as improving overall business efficiency. Musee’s own experiences with manual processes and dispersed data management inefficiencies drove the decision to develop an AI system.

Lee plans to seek selection for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ TIPS (Tech Incubator Program for Startups) next year to fully advance the AI system. During development, the system will first be applied internally for proof-of-concept (PoC), and later be offered to other fashion companies as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). According to Lee, the potential for expansion in this AI business is another reason investors are paying close attention to Musee.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.