Hankyung.com introduces: When thinking of pleated clothes, think of Korea, not Japan. What "Pleatsme" wants for the future

"Pleatsme" the first domestic pleated clothing brand

Introduced "pleated clothes" to the public at a reasonable price

Cost reduction by developing patents, pleated clothes became popular

SEOUL, South Korea, March 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Following announcement covered by Hankyung.com, Pleated clothes used to be exclusive for the 50s to 60s but are now captivating young people in their 20s and 30s with practicality and convenience. The uniqueness of the material is also why Gen Z is attracted to it, who value the expression of individuality.

However, it is still hard to find pleated clothes in many shops. "Pleatsme", Korea's first professional pleated clothing brand, paid attention to this point. The popularization of pleated clothes is the dream of Pleatsme CEO Eun-seok Ko. CEO Ko said, "I want people of all ages to enjoy pleated clothes at reasonable prices."

CEO Ko takes the lead in popularizing "pleated clothes" by setting a reasonable price through development of the company's own patented products.

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Eun-seok Ko, CEO of Pleatsme. (Photo by reporter Hyuna Shin)

Established in 2013, Pleatsme is a clothing brand specializing in pleated clothes that celebrated its ninth year in 2021. They make contemporary pleated apparel by reinventing traditional Korean pleated clothes. The brand's name combines the word pleats, which means crease, and beauty. Pleatsme is a leading company in the pleated clothing field, even having its research institute develop their pleated design and technology in Korea. They have received 18 patents related to the design and technology of their clothes.

The superiority of pleated clothes depends on their crease pattern, processing method, and heat temperature treatment. However, the production cost is doubled as an advanced manufacturing method is required, and the cost for pleated fabric is up to 4 times more than regular fabrics. The cost-benefit ratio is not large since the customer base is limited, which accounts for the fashion industry's limited production of pleated clothes in the past. It has been challenging to achieve significant earnings without premium brands producing them.

However, CEO Ko was determined. He successfully managed to lower the price by focusing on R&D. After that, consumers also responded to his comfortable pleated clothes at reasonable prices. Their sales have been soaring since its establishment in 2013, and the company now has annual sales of 10 billion won. Last year, the net profit alone was 110 billion won. Pleatsme expects to reach 20 billion won in sales within three years by entering the overseas market this month and launching a new brand next year.

CEO Ko said, "Pleated clothing has a high rate of repurchase. There's even a saying that goes, 'You may never try them on, but you'll never wear them only once.' According to our analysis, the sales are growing because existing customers are maintained, and new customers are increasing."

In fact, pleated clothes are easy to store. You don't need to worry about the fabric getting wrinkles even if you don't neatly fold them. And since a large amount of fabric is compressed, its colors are vivid, and the materials last longer than ordinary fabrics. Thanks to these characteristics, the fabric firmly maintains the silhouette and doesn't fit too tightly so it flatters your body shape. It is also comfortable to wear and stretches nicely.

"There has been a rapid increase in sales to young people and male customers."

However, the novel virus COVID-19 also caused a crisis for Pleatsme. Switching distribution channels centered on online and home shopping was a stroke of genius. Pleatsme used to run home shopping shows once or twice a year. However, since COVID-19 last year, they increased the shows to five per season. Mr. Ko explained, "Home shopping sales alone jumped 5 to 6 times. And our profitability has improved despite the difficult time of COVID-19 because home shopping has lower commissions than department stores."

Recently, the number of young customers has significantly increased beyond the 50~60-year-old demographic, the company's target group, due to the diverse designs. According to Pleatsme, the proportion of customers in their 20s and 30s has increased from 20% and 30% to 50% in the last two or three years.

Sales to male customers are also increasing due to the influence of fashion celebrities appeared wearing pleated clothes on several TV shows. This is why Pleatsme has been preparing to launch pleated clothes brands 'Lapley' for young customers and "Zipplet" for male customers. The official launching of these is planned for February next year.

CEO Ko said, "In the past, pleated attire similar to banding pants was usually worn by people in their 50s and 60s. But the designs have become more diversified. Major clothing brands such as Zara have been using pleated clothes more often in their collections, attracting customers in a wider age demographic."

"When you think of pleated clothes, I hope you think of Korea, not Japan."

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(Photo of Pleatsme)

Pleatsme will also begin to enter overseas markets in earnest, starting with the opening of its own mall in the U.S. this month. This is not the first time Pleatsme has entered the overseas market. In December 2017, before COVID-19, they entered a large department store in Chongqing, a metropolitan area in China. In 2019, they also recorded a sellout on home shopping in Australia.

Next year, they are preparing to enter a department store in Indonesia. Pleatsme is also considering expanding overseas markets, mainly in hot regions. That's because pleated clothing has a limitation because of its weight from the additional fabric. These clothes offer vivid and bright colors, which are more suitable for summer clothes. Deputy Director of External Sales at Pleatsme Hee-jung Kim said, "We plan to introduce our products in the southwestern part of the U.S. and are also paying attention to Dubai."

However, besides business expansion, Pleatsme's ultimate goal is to globalize Korean pleats. People typically think of Japanese brands when they see pleated clothes. CEO Ko said, "I want to break that perception and make people think of Korea first." He added that he also needs a one-stop factory for design and production, a research institute to nurture R&D, and professional personnel to make that happen. CEO Ko dreams of building the World Pleats Center.

"Without SBA's support, it's hard to do an overseas promotion."

Pleatsme is a company certified by the Seoul Metropolitan Government (Seoul Business Agency, SBA). SBA provides various programs to increase the market competitiveness of SMEs. CEO Ko said that Seoul's support has been beneficial regarding overseas publicity, information acquisition such as discovering overseas buyers and participating in trade shows, and cost support. He added, "It's not easy for SMEs to bear the cost of entering overseas markets, but thanks to the support of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, I was able to have these many opportunities."