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In Korea, the clothing brand Kuho is a mainstream label with mass appeal. It’s been around for close to two decades and generates roughly $90 million in business a year in its home country. The clothes are known for being easy transition pieces from the office to post-work events (think white button-downs with removable flared cuffs and cropped, tailored pants) that are fresh alternatives to run-of-the-mill workwear.
Kuho has 66 shops-in-shop throughout Korea and is about to open its first standalone boutique. And early next year, it’s coming to the US.
About two months ago, Kuho made its first New York Fashion Week appearance with a small collection of layered button-downs and capelets constructed of shirting material, lightweight polka-dotted coats, long bomber jacket-dresses cinched at the waist, and dresses covered in contrasting colored stripes.
Alongside those funkier pieces, Kuho showed its brand staples, like the aforementioned white shirts and tailored button-downs — some of the best-sellers that are reproduced season after season — to American buyers and editors. The presentation marked the brand’s imminent global expansion; by February 2017, Kuho will be stocked at Nordstrom, Ssense, and Lane Crawford, and at Club 21 in Asia.
Kuho was founded in 1997 as a small, emerging brand by Kuho Jung, and in the last 20 years, the brand has grown to cult status. For the past 17 years, Hyun Jung has worked as its head designer. “I started as a young designer who simply loved the brand and its unique identity,” she said. “Now, I want to introduce and share this amazing brand to women all over the world.”
Jean Colin, vice president of global expansion at Samsung, which acquired the label in 2003, says there may be even more doors coming, and that the brand is in talks with other major department stores worldwide.
Colin works directly with the label to come up with strategies in terms of pricing, fit, fabrication, and product development, and places it “between Acne Studios and The Row” with a lower price point than the latter. “We do very good fabrics,” she adds. “This is something that customers are looking for.”
When it arrives, Kuho will offer off-the-shoulder knit dresses retailing for just over $500 and similarly-priced lightweight outerwear — the kind of on-trend pieces that you can easily wear without working hard to make them look flattering. Keep an eye out for those, plus elevated bombers, chic striped co-ords, and empire waist dresses in sizes 0-12.