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Beauty
Beauty · Olive Young bestsellers09.21 확인-
01
Dioredit 301 Hydrating Cream
Third straight day at No. 1 on Hwahae's all-category ranking (updated 2026.09.21). Rating 5.00; reviews went from 15 to 16. No. 2 is YBK Pore Clear Solution Cleansing Oil (up 1), No. 3 Aestura Atobarrier365 Cream (up 1). Yesterday's No. 2, W.Skin Lab Peptide Energy Ampoule, fell 12 places to 14th.
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03
Aestura Atobarrier365 Cream
Up one spot to 3rd on Hwahae's all-category ranking (9.21), with 18,476 reviews and a 4.68 rating. On Olive Young's Today's Ranking its '[No.1 cream]' 80ml set (₩33,000 → ₩29,700) is 20th.
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10
Torriden DIVE-IN Low Molecular Hyaluronic Acid Serum
Fell four spots to 10th on Hwahae's all-category ranking (9.21; 6,126 reviews, 4.68 rating). On Olive Young's Today's Ranking its 50ml refill set with a Cinnamoroll magnet doll (₩36,000 → ₩25,700) is 22nd.
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Mediheal Essential Mask · Beplain Mung Bean Cleansing Foam
On Olive Young's Today's Ranking, the '[No. 1 for 15 straight years]' Mediheal Essential Mask 10+1 set (₩20,000 → from ₩10,000) is 5th and the '[20 million sold]' Beplain Mung Bean pH-balanced Cleansing Foam double set (₩26,000 → ₩23,900) is 15th. The Beplain foam is also 9th (down 2) on Hwahae's all-category ranking (9.21).
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Seasonal inner dryness — ampoules and soothing creams
On Olive Young's Today's Ranking, the '[inner-dryness must-have]' Wellage Real Hyaluronic Blue 100 Ampoule set (₩50,000 → ₩29,900) is 28th and the Zeroid Soothing Cream 80ml+50ml jumbo set (₩38,000 → ₩29,100) is 33rd.
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d'Alba takes No. 1 and No. 3 in Shopee's August K-beauty risers
In Shopee Korea's August 2026 rising-products report (9.7), d'Alba Plumping Lip Glow Mood Volumizer was No. 1 in K-beauty and d'Alba White Truffle First Spray Serum No. 3. Shopee said all five top spots were products from its Vietnam market. d'Alba was also the No. 1 riser in April with its Waterfull Tone-up Sunscreen.
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VT Reedle Shot — Shopee body wash #4 · Olive Young pore patch #34
In Shopee Korea's August report, VT Reedle Shot Be Clear AC Body Wash was the No. 4 K-beauty riser. At home, VT PDRN Reedle Shot Micro Pore Patch (4 sheets, ₩15,000 → ₩11,800) is 34th on Olive Young's Today's Ranking.
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01
The Face Shop Rice Water Bright Cleansing Foam
No. 1 overall on Olive Young's Today's Ranking. The 160ml foam is marked down from ₩13,000 to ₩10,700, with a '[Jaeyu PICK / NEW]' tag in the name. Yesterday's No. 1, numbuzin No.3 'makeup-friendly' lotion, is nowhere in today's top 100.
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Sanrio collabs hold nine of the top 24
Olive Young's ranks 7, 8, 12, 14, 18, 19, 21, 22 and 24 are all Sanrio Characters collabs — Goodal vitamin C serum (Pompompurin magnet), Mediheal toner pads (Sanrio edition), two Wakemake Leopard Hello Kitty items, Anua PDRN serum (Cinnamoroll pouch), S.nature moisture cream (Hello Kitty keycap keyring), Hanyul pack foam (Hangyodon brush), Torriden serum (Cinnamoroll doll) and Hanyul mugwort serum (Hello Kitty hand mirror). No. 4, Zeroid foam cleanser, also comes with a collab sticker from the Korean character Nureongi.
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'Makeup-friendly' now fronts three product names in the top 30
numbuzin Prep Bubble Pack (NEW; choose from 'makeup-friendly', 'makeup-lasting', glow-toning or radiance-volume; ₩27,000 → from ₩18,900) is 11th, '[Makeup-friendly]' TONE28 Haenam 404 Glow Cream & Serum (₩33,600 → ₩23,520) is 13th, and '[Makeup-friendly / spray ampoule]' IDA Glutathione Brightening Ampoule Mist (₩32,000 → ₩22,400) is 29th.
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16
Cellimax The Vita A Retinal Shot Dual Cream
16th on Olive Young's Today's Ranking (50ml, ₩37,000 → ₩25,900). Shopee Korea's August 2026 rising-products report also named this cream the top riser in the Brazil market's beauty/skincare category. It's an anti-aging cream with 0.05% retinal.
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09
TIRTIR Mask Fit Red Cushion
9th on Olive Young's Today's Ranking. Tagged '[September Olive Young Pick / co-developed with Seo-ok]', 18g in 20 shades, ₩29,000 → from ₩21,200 (marked as an ad). TIRTIR took three of Shopee's top-5 rising products in January 2026.
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CLIO Pro Eye Palette Air returns
38th on Olive Young's Today's Ranking. Listed as '[NEW / discontinued favorite re-released]', ₩34,000 → from ₩23,800, with a free single shadow.
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Three sun-care products still in the top 40
It's late September, yet three sun-care items sit in Olive Young's top 40 — Round Lab Birch Juice Moisturizing Sunscreen 1+1 (with a free 8ml sun serum, ₩25,000 → ₩24,500) at 30th, the AHC Masters Airy Rich Sun Stick double set at 36th and AHC Aqua Rich Sunscreen 1+1 at 37th.
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Rinse-off packs
Olive Young's No. 10 Menokin 30-Second Quick Bubble Mask, No. 11 numbuzin Prep Bubble Pack and No. 21 Hanyul Pack Foam (for breakouts, 120mL) are all apply-wait-rinse products that double as mask and cleanser.
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Beauty-store brand reputation: Olive Young No. 1
In the Korea Corporate Reputation Research Institute's September 2026 cosmetics-store brand reputation ranking (data Aug 3–Sept 3), Olive Young led at 6,762,207 (+2.38% month over month), followed by Missha at 1,431,871 (-39.18%) and Innisfree at 1,359,831 (-9.18%). Total category data fell 4.92%.
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Lush leads vegan cosmetics, index up 23.63%
Lush took #1 in the September 2026 vegan-cosmetics reputation index at 1,496,687, up 23.63% month on month.
Trending K-Beauty Products — see all →
Sources · Olive Young Today's Ranking (2026.09.21) · Hwahae rankings (2026.09.21 Update) · 쇼피코리아 2026년 8월 인기 Rising (2026.09.07) · 일간투데이 화장품 전문점 Brand reputation
Tech
Tech · 갤럭시·Appliances 신제품09.21 확인-
Galaxy S26 Ultra
US Consumer Reports put the Galaxy S26 Ultra first overall among smartphones with a score of 88, and it was the only phone in the top 30 to score full marks on battery, lasting 51 hours 30 minutes in the magazine's test. The Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra topped the foldable category.
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Galaxy S25 FE
The Galaxy S26 FE that arrived on September 4 costs 1,045,000 KRW, or 99,000 KRW more than the S25 FE's 946,000 KRW list price. The S25 FE has the same 6.7-inch screen and 8GB of RAM.
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iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max launch in Korea
The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max went on sale in Korea on September 18, after pre-orders ran September 12-17. Apple Korea lists the 256GB Pro at 1,990,000 KRW and the Pro Max at 2,190,000 KRW, up to 2TB, in Black, Silver, Glacier and Burgundy. Across the three carriers the smaller Pro took 78% of pre-orders at SK Telecom, about 70% at KT and about 80% at LG U+; the first buyer at Apple Myeongdong in Seoul queued for 13 hours.
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iPhone Duo
Apple's first foldable iPhone, unveiled September 9. Korea is in the first release wave: pre-orders open October 16 at 9pm and it ships October 23. Apple Korea prices it at 3,290,000 KRW (256GB), 3,590,000 (512GB), 4,190,000 (1TB) and 5,090,000 (2TB), in Star White and Night Sky.
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One UI 9 rolls out in Korea
Samsung began the official One UI 9 rollout in Korea on September 16, starting with the Galaxy S26 series. New features include My Fancam, which keeps a chosen person centered while filming; Security Brief, which summarizes security issues inside Now Brief; a single place for warranty checks, self-diagnosis, repair estimates and service-center bookings; and voice-phishing detection that also flags AI-synthesized voices.
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Galaxy S26 FE lands in Korea
Samsung released the Galaxy S26 FE in Korea on September 4 at 1,045,000 KRW for 256GB, in Blueberry, Graphite and Pistachio. It runs an Exynos 2500 with 8GB of RAM and a 6.7-inch 120Hz display peaking at 1,900 nits, and ships with six months of Google AI Pro.
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New Galaxy Book6
Samsung launched the budget New Galaxy Book6 in Korea on September 1: one 14-inch size, an Intel Core Series3 processor, 1.35kg, and up to 25 hours of video playback. Depending on the configuration it costs 1.19 to 1.49 million KRW.
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Bespoke AI Combo washer-dryer
Samsung's Bespoke AI Combo, which washes and dries in a single drum, was placed at the front of the showroom at the company's The Brief event in Mexico City in September (Yonhap, 2026.09.13). Samsung is pushing AI home appliances, alongside its Family Hub fridge, as its way into Latin America.
New Gadgets in Korea — see all →
Sources · Apple iPhone 18 프로 · Apple iPhone Duo · 서울신문 개통 첫날 (2026.09.18) · Samsung Newsroom · CBC뉴스 One UI 9 (2026.09.18) · 헤럴드경제 컨슈머리포트 (2026.09.15) · Electronic Times New Galaxy Book6 (2026.09.01)
Food
Food · Convenience-store & dining launches09.21 확인-
Chuseok ancestral-rite table: ₩302,500 — zucchini +33.3%, eggs +16.7%
Korea Price Information priced a Chuseok ancestral-rite table for four on Sept 16: ₩302,500 at traditional markets (+1.2% year on year) and ₩397,700 at big-box stores (+1.6%). By item, zucchini is ₩2,000 each (+33.3%), 10 eggs ₩3,500 (+16.7%), and a 1.5 kg chicken ₩9,000 (+12.5%). Heat waves and frequent rain are blamed.
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August restaurant prices +2.7% — farm produce -6.7%
August consumer prices rose 3.1% year over year; farm produce fell 6.7%, but processed food rose 1.5% and eating out 2.7%. A 20kg bag of rice retailed at ₩61,396 as of Aug 21, 2.85% higher than a year earlier (aT).
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Coupang Eats brings Noryangjin fish market online for Chuseok
Coupang Eats is running a seafood promotion with sashimi, snow crab, sushi and seafood shops from Seoul's Noryangjin Fish Market through Oct 15. Orders over ₩15,000 get a ₩3,000 delivery coupon (first come, first served); participating shops get free promo videos, and new shops get free menu photography and packaging.
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Baemin pays restaurants ₩367 billion up to 5 business days early for Chuseok
Baedal Minjok (Baemin), Korea's biggest delivery app, will pay ₩367 billion in settlements to partner restaurants on Sept 23 instead of the scheduled Sept 28, ahead of the Chuseok holiday. Its B2B store for restaurant owners, Baemin Sanghoe, runs a sale of up to 87% off ingredients and packaging through Sept 27.
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Chaltteok Ice black sesame injeolmi hits 1 million sold
Lotte Wellfood's 'Chaltteok Ice IN Space Rice Cake Shop Black Sesame Injeolmi', a collab with the tvN variety show 'Space Rice Cake Shop' (a black sesame mochi ice cream), sold out its first 500,000 units in five days. Online pre-orders sold out in 18 hours, and cumulative sales reached 1 million as of Sept 17. From October production onward it drops the collab design and becomes a regular product.
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GS25 Sampo Canned Grape Highball
On Sept 16 GS25 launched the exclusive 'Sampo Canned Grape Highball' (4.5% ABV), with real grape pulp from the Sampo canned grapes. Sales of the canned grapes rose more than 21-fold in May–Aug vs. the prior four months, after drink, dessert and punch recipes spread on social media. 3 cans for ₩12,000 through Sept 30. Two Hetbahn rice makgeolli (₩5,900 each) launched the same day.
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Chuseok lunchbox four-way fight — all ₩6,500–6,900
All four convenience chains released Chuseok holiday lunchboxes at once; the flagship boxes at Emart24, GS25 and CU all sit at ₩6,500–6,900 with nearly identical contents (meat, 2–3 kinds of jeon, japchae, namul). CU's holiday lunchbox sales grew 18.5% in 2023, 20.8% in 2024 and 12.2% in 2025, and 60.5% of last year's sales came from single-person-household areas such as college towns and studio-apartment blocks.
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Convenience store card spending hits record ₩3.66 trillion in August
WiseApp·Retail estimates card spending at Korea's four convenience store chains hit ₩3.6585 trillion in August, beating the previous record (₩3.5522 trillion, August 2024). 39.02 million people paid, averaging 15.2 visits and ₩93,834 a month; 71.1% of spending came from men.
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CU tops September convenience-store brand reputation
In the Korea Corporate Reputation Research Institute's September 2026 convenience store brand reputation analysis, CU ranked 1st, GS25 2nd and 7-Eleven 3rd. Top CU-linked keywords were Lisenne (a girl group), 'Love Coin' (a charity campaign) and smoothie. On Sept 9 CU announced five bakery items made with the girl group Lisenne (Yonhap).
New Food Trends in Korea — see all →
Sources · 뉴스인사이드 Sold out 대란 그 후 (2026.09.18) · 뉴스핌 기자수첩 (2026.09.17) · 아시아경제 삼포깐포도Highball (2026.09.15) · 그린포스트코리아 Chuseok 간편식 · 이투데이 Convenience stores 결제액 · 일간투데이 September Convenience stores Brand reputation · 머니투데이 차례상 비용 (2026.09.16) · 이투데이 8월 장바구니 Prices · 데일리안 쿠팡이츠 노량진 · 한국면세뉴스 리테일 인사이드 (2026.09.15)
Travel
Travel · Domestic Travel trends09.21 확인-
Autumn Stay Sale Festa - 80,000 vouchers drop Sept 22 at 10am
Some 80,000 accommodation vouchers from the government's Autumn Travel campaign go out first-come, one per person, from 10am on September 22 through participating online travel agencies. A one-night booking over 70,000 KRW gets 30,000 off, one between 20,000 and 70,000 gets 20,000 off, and two nights totaling over 140,000 KRW get 70,000 off. They work on stays outside the capital region, excluding Sejong and North Chungcheong, and expire November 8.
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Take the dog to Gangwon - 50,000 KRW off the room
Gangwon State and the Gangwon Tourism Foundation are handing out coupons worth 50,000 KRW on pet-friendly stays of 70,000 KRW or more, released first-come every midnight in the Ballyeosaenghwal app. They run September 1 to October 31, expire at midnight on the day they are claimed, and stop when the budget runs out.
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Camping season starts when Chuseok ends
Citing the Korea Tourism Organization, Gokorea reports that campsite booking rates climb sharply from the first weekend after Chuseok every year. Late September to early November is peak season, free of bugs and heat and good for foliage and night skies, which is why the fire agency and the national park service issued their usual warnings about fires and carbon monoxide.
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11.82 million people on the move each day of Chuseok - 6.84 million cars on the holiday itself
On September 20 Korea's transport ministry published its special traffic plan for Chuseok (Sept 23-27). Total trips come to 30.93 million, 3.5% fewer than last year, but because the holiday window is shorter the daily average jumps 56% to 11.82 million. Expressways are forecast to carry 6.05 million vehicles a day (5.41 million last year) and 6.84 million on Chuseok day, September 25. Outbound traffic peaks on the morning of the 24th and the return peaks on the afternoon of the 25th, with Seoul to Busan taking up to 10 hours 30 minutes. Expressway tolls are waived September 24-27.
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Incheon Airport Chuseok peak: 245,000 travelers in a day
Incheon Airport immigration expects about 245,300 people on Sept 27, the busiest day of the Chuseok break (Sept 23-27). The holiday daily average is 225,899. On Oct 2, overlapping with China's National Day holiday, 53,000-60,000 foreign arrivals alone are expected.
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Chuseok package bookings 3.6x — booked three months ahead
Yeogi Eottae says the average booking lead time for Chuseok overseas package tours was 88 days, 24 days earlier than last Chuseok. Package bookings were about 3.6x last year's, with Japan about 6x and China nearly 4x.
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88% of Chuseok trips abroad are short-haul
Hanatour's tally of packaged trips departing September 24-27, taken on August 20, shows about 88% going short-haul to China, Japan or Southeast Asia. China led, driven by Zhangjiajie and Changbai Mountain, with Japan and Southeast Asia behind it. Some 42% leave on the 24th, the first day of the holiday, and 24% leave the day before by taking a day off, so two days hold about 66% of departures.
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Overseas hotel searches jump from 37% to 60%, and more people are going alone
HotelsCombined and KAYAK found that overseas hotels took 60% of Chuseok hotel searches this year, up from 37% a year ago. Japan leads flight searches at 46%, followed by Vietnam and China, while Taiwan rose from 7th to 4th. The share of solo travelers also rose by more than 6 percentage points.
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Fewer nights, nicer rooms
Hotels.com search data puts the average Chuseok stay at 2.5 nights abroad and 1.8 nights at home. Trips of two or three nights make up about 60% of searches, up from roughly 50% last year, and four- and five-star hotels account for more than 60% of searched room-nights, with four-star alone at 43%. The most-searched destinations are Tokyo, Jeju, Fukuoka, Osaka and Gangwon.
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850,000 Koreans went to Japan in August, an August record
Japan's tourism body JNTO counted 850,500 Korean visitors in August, up 28.7% year on year and the highest for any August on record. Total arrivals fell 9.6% to 3,098,900, so Koreans made up 27.4% of them. Through August, 7,420,300 Koreans had visited, up 21.2%, while Chinese arrivals over the same months fell 56.7%.
How Koreans Travel Now — see all →
Sources · 브릿지경제 국토부 Chuseok 교통대책 (2026.09.20) · 아시아경제 인천공항 Chuseok (2026.09.17) · 파이낸셜뉴스 숙박Sale페스타 (2026.09.15) · Travel신문 JNTO 8월 통계 (2026.09.18) · 호텔앤레스토랑 호텔스컴바인 Chuseok · 트래블데일리 호텔스닷컴 Chuseok · 스마트비즈 여기어때 Chuseok 패키지 · 강원도민일보 하나투어 근거리 88%
Fashion
Fashion · Musinsa and the street09.21 확인-
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Suede loafer searches up 2,766% · sales up 28x
Comparing the three weeks after Cheoseo, the traditional end of summer heat (Aug 23–Sep 12), with the three weeks before, fashion app Zigzag saw searches for suede loafers rise 2,766% and sales rise 2,715%. Suede boots were up 1,111% in searches and 1,461% in sales, chunky-sole boots rose 1,229% in sales, and loafer heels and ballerina heels appeared as new search terms. Clothing is following the same material: 29CM said suede outerwear sales for Aug 7–18 were up more than 124% year over year.
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Traditional casual is back — department-store sales +17.8%
Traditional ("TD") casual sales at Korea's three big department store groups — Lotte, Shinsegae and Hyundai — rose an average 17.8% year over year in January–August, a jump from 5.1% in 2025 and 2.1% in 2024. By brand: Ralph Lauren +27%, Hazzys +14%, Lacoste +12%, Beanpole +11%.
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The 'grown woman' look — W Concept knitwear sales +85%
W Concept compared the five days after Cheoseo (Aug 23–28) with the week before and found fall clothing sales up 30%: knits +85%, mid heels +40%, tote bags +35%, outerwear +20%. The platform labeled this fall's direction the 'grown woman' style — leather jackets, suede jackets, long H-line skirts and deep V-neck knits in red, burgundy and plum.
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Fall 2026 — crocodile, velvet and athletic mood
On Aug 20 ELLE Korea named six runway trends for this fall: modern tailoring, new romanticism (ruffles and lace with heavy boots), crocodile-embossed leather, athletic mood (football jerseys and windbreakers as everyday wear), velvet and jacquard florals.
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Musinsa Chuseok Big Sale starts today (Sep 21–27)
Musinsa, Korea's largest fashion platform, runs its '2026 Chuseok Big Sale' Sep 21–27: a 'Chuseok Brand Week' with coupons of up to 30% on popular brands, ₩12,000 off orders of ₩120,000 or more, holiday time deals, and ₩9,900 used-item deals refreshed daily at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. A Chuseok after-sale (Sep 28–Oct 5) and Members' Day (Oct 1–5) follow.
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Musinsa Standard opens Myeongdong Central store
On Sep 8 Musinsa Standard opened its 'Myeongdong Central' store on Myeongdong 8-gil near Myeongdong Station — basement to fourth floor, about 500 pyeong (1,653㎡). It introduces a custom T-shirt service with Seoul and Korea motif graphics for the first time and carries the brand's 26 F/W campaign 'Seoul, Standard'.
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Musinsa posts record H1 revenue of ₩821.7B
Musinsa's consolidated revenue for H1 2026 was ₩821.7 billion, up 22.5% from ₩670.5 billion a year earlier. Exports jumped more than ninefold to about ₩37.2 billion, and Q2 sales at its global stores across 13 regions rose over 143%. Standalone operating profit was ₩65.7 billion (+13.1%), but consolidated operating profit fell 11.2% to ₩52.3 billion.
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'Fall clothes' searches up 53x · light padded jacket sales up 718%
On Musinsa, searches for 'fall clothes' on Sep 1–10 rose about 53x year over year. Sales of spring/fall coats rose 247%, fleece 218%, knits and sweaters 95% and long-sleeve T-shirts 94%. Before that, light padded jacket sales for all of August were up 718%. Musinsa is running its '26 Fall New Arrivals Week' online and offline from Sep 11 to Oct 5 with discounts of up to 15%.
Korean Fashion Trends Now — see all →
Sources · 베타뉴스 지그재그 가을 슈즈 (2026.09.21) · 뉴스핌 Musinsa Chuseok 빅Sale (2026.09.18) · 아시아경제 TD 캐주얼 (2026.09.16) · 뉴스핌 가을옷 검색 (2026.09.11) · 헤럴드경제 경량패딩 (2026.09.09) · 뉴스핌 명동중앙점 (2026.09.08) · 뉴스핌 Musinsa 상반기 실적 (2026.08.31) · 아시아경제 W컨셉 (2026.08.31) · 뉴스핌 29CM Suede (2026.08.20) · 엘르 코리아 가을 trends
라이프Style
Lifestyle · Consumption trends09.21 확인-
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Queueing for a table has moved to lunchtime, with requests up +45.3%
CatchTable, Korea's main restaurant waitlist app, published an analysis of September 2025 through August 2026 on September 21. Requests between 11am and 2pm rose +45.3% year on year, so lunch now accounts for 41.4% of all waitlist requests, ahead of dinner at 34.7%. Users in their forties and above make up 35.3%, with the forties alone at 20.2%. Over last year's Chuseok holiday lunchtime waitlists ran 1.8 times normal levels and 2.4 times on the substitute holiday, and 76.1% of them were outside the capital region, including 4.9 times normal in North Gyeongsang and 3.9 times in Gangwon.
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Only 30% will hold Chuseok ancestral rites, the lowest the survey has recorded
Korea Research polled 1,000 adults September 4-7. Thirty percent said they would hold ancestral rites for Chuseok, five points below last year's 35% and the lowest since the survey began. Sixty-three percent will meet relatives who live apart, down from 68%, and only 13% plan a trip at home or abroad, less than half of last year's 29%. Asked what Chuseok means, 45% said family togetherness, 43% rest and recharging, and 37% just a day off, up five points.
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Workers expect to spend 936,000 KRW on Chuseok, 5.9% less than last year
Eugene Group asked 1,008 of its own employees and published the results on September 17. They expect to spend 936,000 KRW on average this Chuseok, 5.9% less than last year's 995,000. Cash gifts take 70.8% of that, holiday gifts 12.0%, travel 7.6% and eating out 5.3%. Plans to visit a hometown rose from 64.1% to 75.3% while travel plans slipped from 13.3% to 11.3%, and 65.6% said people should start giving parents holiday cash once they have a job.
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61% of companies are paying a Chuseok bonus, two points fewer than last year
The Korea Enterprises Federation surveyed 601 companies with five or more staff and reported on September 17. Four days off is the plan at 76.5% of them, five or more at 14.2% and three or fewer at 9.3%. Some 61.0% intend to pay a holiday bonus, two points below last year's 63.0%. Asked about business conditions, 45.2% said they had worsened and only 9.1% said they had improved.
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Trend Korea 2027 opens for pre-order
Trend Korea 2027, the annual forecast from Seoul National University professor emeritus Kim Rando and his Consumer Trend Center team, was published in September and is taking pre-orders (Miraebook, 22,000 KRW list). Its Yes24 sales index stood at 46,515 when checked on September 21. Youngpoong Bookstore announced a launch exhibition at its Yeouido IFC Mall branch and a talk by Kim on September 10.
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Seasonal-core
Cafe chains are competing on autumn produce. Paul Bassett built its lineup on citron from Goheung, Artisee on figs from Yeongam and chestnuts across seven items, and Starbucks on a roasted sweet potato latte using Muan sweet potatoes, out September 15, plus Korean chestnut desserts. Hollys went with persimmon and black sesame, Pascucci with six black sesame items, and Ediya with black sesame and chestnut drinks in a Sanrio tie-in.
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Analog runs the other way
Hankyung Business argues that while AI writes and draws, the things that still need a human hand are selling. Searches for analog hobbies at the US craft chain Michaels rose 136% over six months, Moleskine journal sales grew more than 6% in the first half, Fujifilm's Instax was up about 30% in its latest quarter, and Warner Music's vinyl, CD and DVD revenue rose 15%. Nielsen IQ also counted a more than 10% rise in sudoku and number-puzzle sales.
Korean Consumer Trends Now — see all →
Sources · 한국경제 캐치테이블 웨이팅 (2026.09.21) · CF뉴스 한국리서치 Chuseok survey · 뉴시스 Chuseok 예상 경비 (2026.09.17) · 세계일보 경총 Chuseok 휴무 (2026.09.17) · 한국경제 In season 코어 (2026.09.14) · 한경비즈니스 Analog Consumption (2026.09.19)
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Original audio — matty.carlyocho
# on Instagram rising audio. long, reels.
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September — Earth, Wind & Fire
#2 on Instagram rising audio. 3:35 long, 1.89M reels.
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Original audio — taddaa.co
#3 on Instagram rising audio. 0:12 long, 43K reels.
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04
폼폼 — soooob
#4 on Instagram rising audio. 2:09 long, 30K reels.
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05
아이고 힘들다 — Melopaper
#5 on Instagram rising audio. 2:13 long, 3.3K reels.
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06
FALLEN ANGEL — JENNIE
#6 on Instagram rising audio. 3:20 long, 130K reels.
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07
Original audio — nctwish_official
#7 on Instagram rising audio. 0:10 long, 2.7K reels.
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08
house float on the water — いろんなためいき
#8 on Instagram rising audio. 2:23 long, 8.9K reels.
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09
NANA NANA — Dinix Music
#9 on Instagram rising audio. 1:03 long, 7.9K reels.
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10
Heart Drop — RESCENE (리센느)
# on Instagram rising audio. long, reels.
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11
자! 주목! — soooob
# on Instagram rising audio. long, reels.
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12
Skibidi — Girls' Generation-HRS
#12 on Instagram rising audio. — long, 1.1K reels.
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13
헤드라인 — 긴급뉴스
#13 on Instagram rising audio. 1:13 long, 4.9K reels.
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14
Every Day Was Beautiful — celestineday
#14 on Instagram rising audio. 2:12 long, 10K reels.
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15
Original audio — imkeonroot
#15 on Instagram rising audio. 0:14 long, 346 reels.
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16
노스탈지아 — BIG Naughty (서동현)
# on Instagram rising audio. long, reels.
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17
쇼팽 녹턴 2번 E flat 장조, Op. 9 No. 2 — 박은식
#17 on Instagram rising audio. 4:30 long, 18K reels.
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18
작고 예쁜 그림 한장 — Dodam
#18 on Instagram rising audio. 2:20 long, 5.9K reels.
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19
always with me ~ ghibli — Toru
#19 on Instagram rising audio. 3:40 long, 67K reels.
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20
꿈꾸던 어른이 되었나요? — 머무르
#20 on Instagram rising audio. 3:28 long, 3K reels.
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21
September — Clay K Slider
# on Instagram rising audio. long, reels.
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22
연애의 조건 (Love Options) — 베스티
#22 on Instagram rising audio. 3:15 long, 11K reels.
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23
[본격!챌린지대작전!!] PLAYYY — 왜요쌤(지윤정)
#23 on Instagram rising audio. 2:14 long, 114 reels.
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24
night letter — Hoonnie
#24 on Instagram rising audio. 2:36 long, 177 reels.
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26
To the Infinity Castle - Muzan vs Hash… — Diego Mitre
#26 on Instagram rising audio. 5:06 long, 44K reels.
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27
静かな夜が、私を抱きしめる — gamza
#27 on Instagram rising audio. 1:46 long, 20K reels.
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28
꽃길만 걷자 (feat. Fleekman) — 버블 사운드
#28 on Instagram rising audio. 3:34 long, 440K reels.
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29
아주 NICE — 세븐틴
#29 on Instagram rising audio. 3:13 long, 100K reels.
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30
Momentum in bloom — sueyalike
#30 on Instagram rising audio. 2:45 long, 21K reels.
-
31
Today Was Enough — jehoda
# on Instagram rising audio. long, reels.
-
32
옴뇸뇸 — BGM President
#32 on Instagram rising audio. 2:12 long, 63K reels.
-
33
가을에 만나 — 윤건
#33 on Instagram rising audio. 3:43 long, 29K reels.
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34
넌 할수 있어라고 말해 주세요 — 동요
#34 on Instagram rising audio. 2:08 long, 11K reels.
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35
Training Season (Live from the Royal… — Dua Lipa
#35 on Instagram rising audio. 3:41 long, 260K reels.
-
36
Calm but ready — sueyalike
#36 on Instagram rising audio. 3:30 long, 16K reels.
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37
REVENGE (Super Slowed) — 1HXSX, wnorg17
#37 on Instagram rising audio. 2:02 long, 860K reels.
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September이 되니 September가 돌아왔다
Earth, Wind & Fire’s "September" sits at #2 with 1.89M reels, and a cover of the same song holds #21 separately.
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Original audio가 1·3·7·#15
Close to half the top of the chart is "Original audio" uploaded by individual accounts — mostly 10-14 second clips.
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음원 차트와 릴스는 따로 논다
BIG Naughty’s "Nostalgia" is #4 on Spotify Korea but is sliding on Reels at 1K uses. "September," #2 on Reels, is nowhere on the streaming chart.
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태그는 최대 5개, 없는 게 나을 때도 있다
Hashtags are now capped at five per post, and one dataset shows posts with no tags reaching 23% further than heavily tagged ones.
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태그 순위표는 공개되지 않는다
Instagram does not publish hashtag usage rankings. The "Rising" audio list inside the Reels editor is the only ranking visible in the app.
Trending Instagram Reels Audio in Korea — see all →
Sources · Instagram Instagram app, Reels audio "Rising" list (checked 2026.09.06 04:05 KST) · ContentsPilot
TikTok
TikTok · Rising hashtags09.21 확인-
01
#jujutsukaisen
#1 on TikTok Creative Center's Korea 7-day chart. 23.6K posts, 9.6M views. Category: News & Entertainment.
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02
#animefyp
#2 on TikTok Creative Center's Korea 7-day chart. 22.8K posts, 8.8M views. Category: News & Entertainment.
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03
#leagueoflegends
#3 in Korea on TikTok Creative Center, 7-day. 22.1K posts, 9.2M views. Category: Games.
-
01
#유용한
#1 on TikTok Creative Center's Korea 30-day chart. 9.2K posts, 19.4M views. Category: Food & Beverage. The tag means "useful".
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02
#wildrift
#2 on TikTok Creative Center's Korea 30-day chart. 32.5K posts, 17.5M views. Category: Games.
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03
#생활팁
#3 on TikTok Creative Center's Korea 30-day chart. 9.5K posts, 21.6M views. Category: Food & Beverage. The tag means "life hacks".
Trending TikTok Hashtags in Korea — see all →
Sources · TikTok Creative Center (Korea)
YouTube
YouTube · Long-form Top 3009.21 확인Sources · TubeBoard creator rankings · Preply Slang survey
Music
Music · Spotify Korea09.21 확인Sources · Spotify Korea daily (kworb)
Box Office
Box Office · Domestic 일별 관객수09.21 확인-
01
The Intern
Released 2026.09.16. No. 1 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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02
The Odyssey
Released 2026.08.05. No. 2 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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03
Obsession
Released 2026.09.02. No. 3 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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04
Resident Evil: Night Zero
Released 2026.09.17. No. 4 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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05
Spider-Man: Brand New Day
Released 2026.07.29. No. 5 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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06
Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island
Released 2026.09.30. No. 6 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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07
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
Released 2007.06.14. No. 7 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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08
Digimon Adventure & Digimon Adventure: Our War Game!
Released 2026.09.16. No. 8 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
-
09
The Drama
Released 2026.09.09. No. 9 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
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10
Tazza: Song of Beelzebub
Released 2026.09.23. No. 10 in daily admissions (KOFIC ticketing data).
Korean Box Office Today — see all →
Sources · KOFIC KOBIS 일별 박스오피스 (2026.09.20)
Games 순위
Games · Domestic Games 순위09.21 확인-
01
League of Legends
MOBA from Riot Games. No. 1 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
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02
FC Online
Sports from EA Korea Studio. No. 2 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
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03
Valorant
FPS from Riot Games. No. 3 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
04
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds
FPS from Krafton. No. 4 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
05
MapleStory
MMORPG from Wizet Studio. No. 5 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
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06
Overwatch 2
FPS from Blizzard. No. 6 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
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07
Sudden Attack
FPS from Nexon GT. No. 7 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
08
Roblox
Role-playing from Roblox Corporation. No. 8 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
09
StarCraft
RTS from Blizzard. No. 9 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
10
Aion 2
MMORPG from NCSoft. No. 10 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
11
Lost Ark
MMORPG from Smilegate RPG. No. 11 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
12
Lineage
MMORPG from NCSoft. No. 12 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
13
Dungeon & Fighter
Action RPG from Neople. No. 13 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
14
MapleStory Worlds
Other from Nexon. No. 14 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
15
Minecraft
Adventure from Mojang. No. 15 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
16
Path of Exile 2
MMORPG from Grinding Gear Games. No. 16 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
17
Eternal Return
Strategy shooter from Nimble Neuron. No. 17 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
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18
Eclipse: The Awakening
MMORPG from NPIXEL. No. 18 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
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19
Diablo II
Action RPG from Blizzard. No. 19 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
-
20
TalesRunner
Racing from Raon Entertainment. No. 20 overall, combining portal trends, PC-bang usage, streaming viewers and user votes.
Most Popular Games in Korea — see all →
Sources · Games메카 Popular games 순위 (2026.09.09~09.15 measured)
Memes · Slang
Memes · Slang and catchphrases09.21 확인-
01
'Jang Won-young ___' — and she answered
A meme where you put 'Jang Won-young' (of K-pop group IVE) in front of anything good to praise it — a Jang Won-young timetable, Jang Won-young fried chicken. Growing out of her earlier 'Lucky Vicky' positivity meme, it settled in as the opposite of 'bamti' (tacky), and hit TV in August when Bibi explained it on JTBC's 'Please Take Care of My Refrigerator'. On Sep 10 Jang replied herself on the fan app Bubble: don't eat bamti meals, eat Jang Won-young meals… have a Jang Won-young day. On Sep 16 Careet titled its meme roundup 'Is the opposite of bamti Jang Won-young?'
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'I'll give up ___… no, I'll do it… I'm sorry'
The source is a job applicant's texts that said they'd skip an interview, then that they'd come, then that they'd skip it after all — one minute apart. People fill the blank with studying, work, or September. Gogumafarm listed it among August's top memes and HSAD ran it as 'I'm giving up September' in its September meme roundup. Brand accounts like Scrub Daddy and the Korea Polar Research Institute joined in.
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Noble-person map
Saju Doryeong's 'noble-person map' (gwiin jido) links your birth date with those of friends, partners and family and shows, map-style, who is your benefactor and who is your right hand, based on saju (Korean four-pillars fortune telling). The map only fills in when friends open your link, so it spread through Instagram Story shares. HSAD included it in its September meme roundup.
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Macaron dunking
Dropping mini macarons into cold milk or iced americano and eating them. It spread as ASMR material for mukbang creators, and HSAD included it in its September meme roundup.
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Bamti · guilty bamti · bamti-ness
'Bamti' describes a person, thing or situation that looks subtly tacky or clumsy. It comes from a screenshot of a user named Bamti in the avatar game LINE Play who answered criticism of their looks with a flat 'OK'. Hankook Ilbo (March) and Kyunghyang Shinmun (May) covered it, and spin-offs have stuck: 'guilty bamti' (tacky but oddly appealing), 'bamti-nanda' (it looks bamti) and 'bamti-ryeok' (bamti power). In September it came back paired with its new opposite, 'Jang Won-young'.
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Ppi-by-ppi · senior-ppi · mega-ppi
The source is an Aug 13 community post asking 'Can I marry my boyfriend who works as a clown (ppiero)?' The writer called a senior clown 'senior-ppi', a successful one 'mega-ppi', and turned 'person by person' into 'ppi-by-ppi'; people found it hilarious and started sticking '-ppi' onto everything. Celebrities who once worked as clowns, like Lee Yong-joo and Yoon Kyung-ho, got fresh attention too.
Korean Slang and Memes Trending Now — see all →
Sources · 엘르 코리아 장원영 Memes (2026.09.11) · 캐릿 "요즘 뜨는 Memes" (2026.09.16) · 캐릿 삐에로 Memes (2026.08.25) · HSAD 월간 2026Memes September · Gogumafarm 8월 최신 Memes · 한국일보 밤티