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New Olive Young Central Myeongdong Town aims for optimal shopping experience

Published: 26 Mar. 2026, 18:25 Updated: 27 Mar. 2026, 14:03

CHO YONG-JUN
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The Olive Young Central Myeongdong Town branch in central Seoul. [CHO YONG-JUN]

It is really not difficult to find Olive Young in Seoul — there are already eight just in the Myeongdong neighborhood in central Seoul, yet the latest one in the bustling tourist hub manages to set itself apart.

The new Central Myeongdong Town branch, which opened on Thursday, is the second-largest branch in Korea. While the largest Olive Young, the N Seongsu store, is focused on offering special experiences like free makeup sessions, the new branch is dead-focused on providing the optimal shopping experience for locals and tourists alike.

The three-story building, spanning some 34,000 square feet, feels different from other Olive Young branches from the moment you step into the store. Unlike other stores, lined with shelves densely packed with skincare and cosmetic items, the first floor is devoid of product placement. Instead, there’s a relatively large empty area with a short escalator that takes you to the real first floor.

The area near the two entrances was purposefully designed as a space where customers can unpack their purchases or wait for friends, according to the company. The store also has a whopping 22 checkout counters, all with actual human staff, to minimize the wait time. There, however, was still a noticeable queue during opening day.

Premium beauty section at the Olive Young Central Myeongdong Town in central Seoul[CHO YONG-JUN]

A total of 15,000 different products on display in the three-story store makes the new Olive Young store the one with the biggest product range, yet it doesn’t feel like the products are crammed into a small space. The skincare items, perfumes and color cosmetics were generously spaced out throughout the second and third floors of the building.

The sunscreen area, notably, had three samples of sunscreens each, instead of one sample per product, as seen in other stores.

Sunscreen tester section at the Olive Young Central Myeongdong Town in central Seoul [CHO YONG-JUN]

Another unusual section of the store was the “Eats K-food” section on the third floor, dedicated to food, beverages and snacks that tourists might be interested in. There were jellies, chips, chocolates and an entire fridge dedicated to the now-famous banana milk.

“We hope the differentiated shopping experience at the Central Myeongdong Town branch leads to further demand for K-beauty products and expands the K-beauty business,” the retailer said in a press release.