K-Fashion Goes Premium With 'All in Korea' Made-in-Korea Strategy

As K-fashion's popularity continues to rise in global markets, "All in Korea" products—where every process from materials to sewing to design is performed domestically—are gaining ground. The strategy goes beyond simply promoting Korean brands, positioning the complete domestic production chain as a "K-Premium" value proposition.

The Korea Fashion Association announced Wednesday that it set up a booth at the 2025 Kuala Lumpur K-Wave Expo, held in Malaysia from January 11 to 13, to promote its All in Korea initiative.

The K-Wave Expo is a global export marketing event hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and organized by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) since 2010 to help Korean companies expand into overseas markets. The association has participated in K-Wave Expos since the Hong Kong event in 2017, including events in Moscow, Singapore, and Dubai.

At this expo, the association actively promoted its All in Korea initiative, launched last year, to overseas buyers. The program supports global exports and market entry of textile and fashion products made entirely in Korea—including Korean materials, sewing, and design. The strategy aims to strengthen positioning in overseas markets by emphasizing complete domestic production as "K-Premium."

"We started this initiative after noticing that overseas buyers interested in K-fashion were checking whether production processes, not just brands, were carried out in Korea," an association official said. "We expect this to expand the domestic market and boost exports of Korean textile and fashion products, while also upgrading the industry structure through stronger cooperation among domestic clothing brands, materials companies, and apparel manufacturers."

K-fashion brands are gaining prominence in global markets with support from the All in Korea initiative. COOR, for example, expects its exports to reach $700,000 this year, a sevenfold increase in two years from $100,000 (approximately 147 million won) in 2023. The COOR flagship store in Seoul's Seongsu-dong has seen sales jump more than 100 percent year-on-year as overseas tourists continue to visit.

EENK, which showcased its collection at Paris Fashion Week in March, is growing into an international brand with overseas sales (6.7 billion won) surpassing domestic sales (4.3 billion won) last year. EENK has gained recognition on the international stage, becoming the first Asian womenswear brand to enter French luxury department store Printemps.

"We will continue to enhance the global competitiveness of our fashion brands by leveraging our strong digital ecosystem and the influence of Korean Wave content, strengthening marketing linked to K-pop concerts and other events, and expanding collaboration with local platforms and retailers," said Sung Rae-eun, chairman of the Korea Fashion Association.