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Korean Beauty in a Global Cultural Context*

Abstract Culture appears to be the significant factor for the competitiveness of a country, as a unique cultural heritage can function as a differentiation tool that can never be emulated by others (Kim, 2009). More and more countries are making great efforts to recognize their own values and to develop cultural contents. Korea, however, lacks a distinctive national image or cultural identity compared to neighboring countries, such as Japan and China. In particular, the Korean lifestyle and traditional values are not being introduced to the world. A cultural prototype can be utilized to render the image of a certain nation more appealing. Living in highly diversified world, it is necessary to rediscover and properly understand the true value of our traditional culture. Therefore, this study (1) identifies the intrinsic values of Korean beauty from ideological, religious, and aesthetic perspectives and backgrounds; (2) discovers the Korean beauty present in the traditional Korean lifestyle and culture, including clothing, food, housing, Korean liquor, and Korean paper; and (3) provides strategic implications for globalizing Korean beauty and improving the national brand value of Korea. To discover the value of Korean beauty, a multilateral literature review was conducted. Previous studies have explored the intrinsic Korean beauty present in traditional culture (i.e., ideology, religion and aesthetics) and in traditional lifestyles (i.e., clothing, food, housing, traditional liquor and paper). Additionally, to reexamine Korean beauty as it is perceived in a modern context, in-depth interviews with thirteen experts in Korean culture were conducted. The in-depth interview method was also applied to determine the strategic implications of globalizing Korean standards of beauty. Lastly, the Experience Grid Model by Schmitt (1999a) was utilized to analyze the globalization strategies of Korean standards of beauty. This study presents the basic characteristics of Korean beauty according to three descriptions: Sagacious harmony of man and nature, Immanence of spiritual values: Symbolism and the culture of ‘Jeong ()’, and Realistic optimism: Beauty of Pungryu () and Han (). As Kim (2004b) emphasized the substantiality of intangible value despite the difficulty of proving such value, Korean beauty actually appears in every lifestyle component, including clothing, food, housing, traditional liquors, and Korean paper. From the in-depth interviews, experts commonly pointed out the importance of Korean people having pride in their own tradition and culture before aiming at the globalization of Korean beauty. The results of interviews regarding the requirements for advertising and globalizing Korean beauty can be summed up in three points: ‘In-First-Then-Out’, ‘Find and Stick to the KOREANESS (Korean Identity)’, and ‘Importance of Presentation and Direct Experience’. First, ‘In-First-Then-Out’ indicates that having a profound knowledge of and pride in one’s own culture is an essential prerequisite for Koreans. Second, ‘Find and Stick to the KOREANESS’ stresses the development of core values and unique edges in Korean culture. Lastly, ‘Importance of Presentation and Direct Experience’ suggests that the firsthand experience of the total traditional Korean culture should be further expanded. As a result, this study proposes five marketing strategies related to the Strategic Experiential Modules (SEMs) that can induce a positive perception toward Korean culture and national image. Regarding ‘Sense’ marketing, developing luxurious contents with a combination of modernism and tradition is suggested. Movies and fashion shows can be effective experiential channels that can arouse either the aesthetic amusement of or pleasure in Korean beauty. In emotion marketing, related to the ‘Feel’, Ko (2005) described the emotional branding strategy in terms of an experienced aspect. Expanding the experiential channel and creating emotional stimuli that compose certain moods relevant to Korean culture is necessary. From the cognition marketing aspect, which is relevant the ‘Think’ perspective, associative thinking with Korean culture can be induced by a media program, joint Asian symposium and distinctive naming strategy. As to the ‘Act’ module, raising the level of holistic experience and providing various options can help attract voluntary actions. Lastly, relationship marketing, corresponding to the ‘Relate’ factor, can be adopted, as this factor injects Korean identity into the whole experience, which leads to a bonding relationship and sincere interaction. Additionally, excellent contents and experiences need to be provided to arouse the self-respect of the Korean people and to produce a natural word-of-mouth effect. This study is intended to rediscover cultural values in Korean tradition in a highly developed material civilization. Traditional cultures have long been transformed, recreated, and naturally selected by socio-cultural changes and are now being redefined as subjects of global materialism. The development of unique Korean values can be utilized by many actors: Korea, by improving national brand value, and Korean companies, by establishing global marketing strategies and using storytelling as a marketing tool. It is time for Korea to grapple with the means of globalizing and positioning traditional Korean culture as having a premium value in the global environment. The general aesthetic values of Korean tradition can be useful in branding with cultural-specific storytelling and differentiating a brand or product (Kim, Kim, & Ko, 2010; Ko & Lee, 2011). However, anxious expectation for short-term performance can ruin the ongoing efforts. The main contribution of this study is that it encompasses both an academic and a managerial perspective in defining Korean beauty and developing a globalization strategy by collecting comments from a variety of expert panels. Further research can implement a quantitative study on consumers’ attitudes about, satisfaction with, and evaluation of Korean culture. Additionally, the application of this study to developing brands with storytelling of Korean culture and as a substantive strategy for communicating with customers is encouraged.