Delphine’s move comes over a year after her younger brother Alexandre Arnault, an executive vice-president at Tiffany & Co., signed Blackpink singer Rosé to represent the jewellery house. Rosé now advertises Tiffany’s Hardwear line, a collection of necklaces and bracelets.

All of which points at the undeniable – the world’s biggest luxury conglomerate is officially betting big on K-pop.

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It’s not only LVMH: In January, BTS rapper Suga became a brand ambassador for Valentino, per WWD.

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A little aggressive, n’est-ce pas?

The reason might lie in the math. Beyond the fact that K-pop stars come with legions of fans of their own, South Koreans are now the world’s biggest luxury consumers, CNBC reported, citing figures from Morgan Stanley. The estimated total value of South Korea’s spending on personal luxury goods in 2022 went up by 24 per cent year-on-year.

And the average South Korean person spent at least US$325 on luxury items in 2022 – far exceeding the US$55 per capita spending in China, and the US$280 per capita expenses in the US, according to Morgan Stanley’s report.

Soo Kim, a business professor at Singapore’s Nanyang Business School, said South Korea’s competitive environment and the seemingly insurmountable wealth gap are driving the luxury-spending machine in the country. South Koreans collectively ran up a staggering amount of debt in 2021 that exceeded the country’s GDP by five per cent, but they continue to spend big on luxury goods, reported BNN Bloomberg.

The spending won’t stop because branded items help compensate for “constant threats” to the average South Korean consumer’s “ego”, Kim added. Luxury items also provide a “psychological release” – giving South Korean consumers control over their physical appearance, she said.

“Furthermore, Koreans take great pride in their own citizens excelling in the global arena. Seeing their stars represent these luxury houses would positively impact Koreans’ perception of these brands,” Kim said.

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A targeted move to win over the South Korean market

Experts say there’s another big reason LVMH is looking at South Korea: it’s the gateway to Asia.

“If you have South Korea, you have the northeastern Asian market,” Jacob Cooke, the chief executive officer of WPIC, a Beijing-based e-commerce consulting firm, told WWD in January.

There’s also South Korea’s cultural clout, David Dubois, a professor of marketing at Insead Business School, said.

“Fashion trends tend to be created and adopted in South Korea, before being diffused to other markets in Asia,” Dubois said. He added that LVMH’s K-pop promotions are a “continuation” of a long-term strategy to “establish long-lasting footprints” in the South Korean market.

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Maybe later China?

And China, for various reasons, might also not be the prime market for LVMH’s products right now.

“With the Covid lockdowns and the recent sentiment against wealth inequality and the overt display of wealth in China, the relationship between luxury houses and the Chinese market is murkier,” Kim said.

Kim said it “makes sense” for LVMH to redistribute resources to places like Japan and Korea. She also said South Korea is “increasingly known” for its K-pop stars, films and shows in the US – which helps with promotions stateside too.

“I’m sure also it doesn’t hurt that Korea receives a great number of Chinese tourists. Once the Covid situation settles, it is possible that Chinese tourists, with their spending power, return to Korea,” Kim said. “The investment in Korea could also serve as an indirect way to target Chinese consumers.”

Representatives at LVMH did not immediately respond to request for comment.