Poster image for "Lotte Town Summer Market" held in collaboration with Pokémon intellectual propertyLOTTE DEPARTMENT STORE
Pokémonis set to find a new summer habitat in Songpa District, southern Seoul, this month, according to Lotte Department Store on Thursday.
The department store is bringing food, beverages, installations and merchandise all inspired by the Japanese franchise to Lotte World Tower through the inaugural "Lotte Town Summer Market" from Aug. 16 to 31. It plans to establish the festival as an annual summer counterpart to the winter-season “Lotte Town Christmas Market."
The event, themed “Pokémon Mega Festa 2026: Pokémon Starlight Paradise” (translated), will be held in partnership with global Pokémon intellectual property as the franchise marks its 30th anniversary.
It will take place at the lawn area of Lotte World Tower, which spans 1,322 square meters (14,229 square feet).
Towering over the center of the lawn plaza, the giant "Poké Ball Dome” will serve as the festival's centerpiece. The 25-meter-wide (82-foot), 12.5-meter-tall structure depicting the franchise's iconic Poké Ball will transport visitors to a summer resort-inspired escape.
A roughly 12-meter-long (39-foot-long) waterway with flowing water will run through the venue, while a large media wall will display waterfall scenes alongside Pokémon-themed visuals. The ceiling will feature immersive video projections based on a so-called starlight paradise concept.
Ten brands, including the KBO club Lotte Giants and fashion brand Uniqlo, will offer a range of Pokémon-collaboration merchandise, including baseball jerseys and plush toys. Nine food and beverage brands will offer more than 40 limited-edition Pokémon-themed menu items at the outdoor market.
The event will be open exclusively to visitors with reservations. Booking will be available in two rounds through the Lotte Department Store Mall and Lotte ON mobile apps at 10:30 a.m. on Friday and Aug. 18.
People hold plush toys of Pokémon at Lotte Department Store branch in Busan on July 20.LOTTE DEPARTMENT STORE
During the event, a Pokémon pop-up store will also operate in the “Atrium” space on the first floor of Lotte World Mall in Jamsil.
"We designed the experience so visitors can enjoy a 'mall-cation' by moving between the outdoor lawn plaza and the indoor shopping spaces," Kim Jun-se, head of the branding division at Lotte Department Store, said.
Department stores are increasingly investing in experiential spaces as record-breaking heat waves encourage shoppers to spend more time in a single location, where they can shop, dine and relax without having to travel between multiple destinations.
Between July 25 and Sunday, visitor numbers at Lotte, Shinsegae and Hyundai department stores rose 30 percent, 14 percent and 17 percent, respectively, from the previous week. At Lotte World Mall, the number of visitors reached 450,000 over the weekend.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
