KakaoStyle
2022 – 2024 | Brand Design Group Leader, Manager of Brand Design Team & Platform Design Team
In 2015, a small startup launched ZIGZAG, a women's fashion platform, which significantly grew and was acquired by the major South Korean IT company, Kakao Corp., in 2021, thus establishing KakaoStyle. KakaoStyle now operates ZIGZAG as its main service targeting the MZ generation, along with services for middle-aged women such as Posty and Fashion by Kakao. Recently, they launched KITTO, a social platform in Japan delivering news about Korean pop culture.
KakaoStyle has become South Korea's largest women's lifestyle platform, recording annual sales of over one trillion won and demonstrating consistent growth.
I joined in September 2022 as the Brand Design Group Leader. The Brand Design Group, part of the Creative Division, manages everything from branding to content and marketing design for all internal and external products of KakaoStyle, as well as the design systems for its platforms, overseeing a team of approximately 16 members.
As the Brand Design Group Leader, I participated in executive-level meetings where my role extended beyond design responsibilities to include business aspects and data analysis. I contributed to setting and deliberating on the company's broad objectives and vision, ensuring that our strategic direction aligned with our design principles and market needs.
* These projects were created through collaboration with many excellent team members, and due to internal policies, technical
details and externally sensitive information have not been disclosed.
2023 Brand Campaign
In 2023(May 15 – June 04), ZIGZAG released its first brand campaign since 2021, under the brand’s motto
"There is no standardized answer to life and style."
The campaign was designed to align with the contemporary lifestyles of the target users, MZ generations. To effectively convey this message, ZIGZAG enlisted six celebrities and influencers, each representing distinct fields and symbolizing the brand's diverse and inclusive direction.
2021 Brand Campaign Key Visual
The 2023 campaign continues to deliver a message from the 2021 campaign. The 2021 campaign featured renowned actress Youn Yuh-jung as a persona akin to a life mentor, delivering a message about embracing one's unique style and attitude toward life to the 1030 generation.
"니들 마음대로 사세요 (Live your life your way)."
- 2021 Campaign Slogan
The Korean phrase "니들 마음대로 사세요" carries a dual meaning, reflecting both literal and metaphorical interpretations. Literally, it translates to 1)"Buy as you like," suggesting freedom in one's shopping choices. It also extends to 2)"Live your life your way," implying personal choice in broader life decisions. This dual meaning enriches the slogan both their lifestyle and consumer behavior.
2023 Brand Campaign Models
In contrast, the 2023 campaign has evolved to a format where ZIGZAG's primary target audience, women in their 20s and 30s, directly communicate the message to themselves, respecting self-expression and personal empowerment.
"제가 알아서 살게요 (I'll handle it myself)."
- 2023 Campaign Slogan
Like 2021 campaign slogan, The Korean phrase "제가 알아서 살게요" carries a dual meaning as well. It expresses that 1)I will manage my own life and also tells that 2)I will handle my shopping on my own.
Previously, we conveyed the messages we wanted to deliver through respected external figures to our target audience. This time, we aimed for a deeper connection by having our target audience directly express these messages themselves, creating a stronger sense of empathy.
Property | 2021 Brand Campaign | 2023 Brand Campaign |
|---|---|---|
Number of Models | 1 | 6+@ |
Model Type | Respected persona and life mentor | Young artists living distinct, stylish lives |
Speaker | From outside | from oneself |
Speaking to | To younger generation | To oneself |
Distribution | Digital Ad, TV | Digital Ad, Pop-up Store, In-product promotion, Guerrilla Posters, Billboards |
Main Films
In this campaign, we shot a main film featuring six lead models and developed various types of content, including brand videos showcasing products, short-form videos, and photo shoots, which we distributed across different platforms and formats. Since these artists are already well-known in Korea, their profiles and reputations are well-established. This familiarity allowed us to quickly build tension and narrative in the ads without a complex backstory, ultimately enabling us to deliver a powerful message effectively at the end.
In the main film, each artist confidently confronts the stereotypes and gossip they face externally, delivering a bold message of "I'll handle it myself." This approach allowed us to effectively convey the story we wanted to tell.
Yerin Baek (백예린) / Musician
LIZ - IVE (리즈 - IVE) / K-Pop Idol
1G (원지) / Travel Influencer
Yujin Bae (배유진) / Model
Ye-eun Shin (신예은) / Actress
Haejoo (해쭈) / Influencer
In-product Brand Contents
While the main film brought our brand story to life, we also pursued our business objectives by partnering with specialized influencers, alongside our six main models. These influencers gave authentic reviews of our products, adding realism to the brand content that we produced and shared with the public.
The content was structured around specific themes. Influencers purchased products related to these themes from our platform and then provided candid reviews, offering genuine insights to potential buyers. We filmed 24+ brand contents.
![원지 찐템 최초 공개✈️🧳 캐리어 이렇게 싸면 수납 천재 마자 아니야ㅑㅑ [제트룸 Z-ROOM] - 원지 편](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/-8XPj08RGQc/maxresdefault.jpg)
![앙큼걸 찐템 털기🦊 해쭈가 직접 고른 앙큼폭스걸 코디까지 대공개🔥 [제트룸 Z-ROOM] - 해쭈 편](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/o535pHWxlMY/maxresdefault.jpg)
Shopping for Traveling with 1G
Must buy items in Korea with Haejoo
In addition to video content, our campaign aimed to enhance the experience beyond mere shopping.
We prepared exclusive photo shoots, interviews, AR filters, and downloadable phone wallpapers, available only on our platform. This approach was designed to engage not just shoppers but also fans of our models, offering them a unique experience that they could only get by visiting our platform.
Offline Campaign Promotion
To engage with infrequent users and new users, we launched an offline promotion campaign beyond digital space. Rather than filling our materials with too much information, we chose bold images of our models in unique advertising settings to spark people's interest and curiosity.
With a limited budget for offline efforts, a nationwide campaign wasn't feasible. We concentrated our efforts in Seongsu-dong, Seoul—a hotspot for our target audience—where we captured attention with strategically placed billboards and guerrilla posters.
Billboard on Seongsu-Dong, Seoul, Korea
Guerrilla Posters on Seongsu's main street
Transportation Stickers (Bus & Taxi)
Key Results
During the campaign, we significantly surpassed our target KPIs. We reached an all-time high in Daily Active Users (DAU) and established new records in six of the top 10 metrics. We produced around 20 videos and photo shoots, using these to create over 50 content pieces. Besides model-driven content, we engaged users with downloadable fortune cards from collaborations with popular characters and interactive AR filters, enhancing the overall experience.
Our extensive promotions across various media channels led to the video campaign achieving 152% of its targeted performance, while user engagement soared by 290%. The main campaign video garnered significant attention, trending in real time on platforms like Twitter and YouTube.
Users resonated strongly with the campaign's messages and appreciated the consistent branding. Our approach of featuring a diverse array of models fostered a better understanding and positive response towards diversity. Social media content saw a 60% increase in organic views, confirming the campaign’s success.
KPI | Expectation | Result |
|---|---|---|
Brand GMV | - | ₩18.5B (+₩4.3B) |
Company-wide Promotion GMV | - | ₩83.1B (+21.7%) |
Brand Index - Diversity | +5% (38.2%) | +5.7% (43.9%) |
Brand Index - Reliability | +5% (16.2%) | +4.9% (21.1%) |
Brand Index - Trend | +5% (38.5%) | +4.6% (43.1%) |
Awareness | +5% | +5% |
Incremental revenue from exposure brands | +₩2.0B | +₩12B |
DAU Total | +800K | +3.22M (+400%) |
ZIGZAG Pop-up Store
To create a stronger synergy with our campaign, KakaoStyle launched its first-ever pop-up store. We operated a sales-oriented pop-up store for about two weeks, in collaboration with 22 popular brands on our platform. This allowed us to offer a special experience by directly interacting with users who had previously only engaged with us online.
Pop-up Store Teaser
About the sight - The Hyundai Seoul
The Hyundai Seoul is an expansive retail environment in Yeouido, Seoul, boasting an operating space of approximately 89,100 square meters, which is about the size of 13 football fields. This makes it one of the largest department stores in Seoul.
The Hyundai Seoul managed to surpass 1 trillion won ($749 million) in annual sales within just 2 years and 6 months of its opening, marking it as the fastest among domestic department stores to reach this milestone.
One of the notable features of the pop-up store was the ability for customers to make purchases directly through an app, eliminating the need to physically carry items home, as all app purchases were delivered directly to their homes free of charge.
This pop-up store initiative was part of Zigzag’s strategic goal to solidify its position as a leading style commerce platform. It featured key services such as ‘Z-Payment’ (Z-Pay), a proprietary payment solution, and ‘Direct Delivery’, a rapid delivery service, enhancing the overall customer experience. The design of the pop-up store itself symbolized the 'Direct Delivery' service, utilizing a 'pink delivery box' motif.
Pop-up Store Entrance
The exterior is designed around ZIGZAG's signature pink delivery box. This design brings the online experience into a physical space, allowing customers to shop in a box-like environment.
To highlight the products without overwhelming the interior with excessive colors, we used metal materials to naturally expand the sense of space and incorporated mirrors into the design.
ZIGZAG placed a significant emphasis on showcasing SMEs and branded boutiques, while highlighting the platform’s unique value through the Direct Delivery experience. This strategy not only presented the products but also emphasized the distinctiveness of the platform by offering an enhanced customer experience, which is reflective of a more modern, streamlined approach to shopping that resonates with today’s consumer behaviors.
Due to the lack of physical space to showcase the vast array of products that could fill an entire floor of The Hyundai Seoul, we integrated the limitless space of online experiences into the physical store. We introduced a system that uses tags to display various colors and sizes of products and QR codes to facilitate quick and convenient payment and delivery services.
The ZIGZAG Pop-up Store was primarily conceptualized around a sales-focused experience. However, we also incorporated features to enhance the brand experience for customers meeting our platform offline for the first time.
The fitting rooms, an optimal and private space to try out products, also served as photo zones where visitors could take stylish photos with the garments they tried on. One of the fitting rooms featured a mirror room utilizing ZIGZAG's 3D stickers, while the other was decked out in ZIGZAG's brand color, pink, creating a vibrant pink room.
To cater to customers who traveled from afar, we produced limited edition collaborative products available exclusively at the pop-up. These items sold out every morning during the event due to their popularity.
In appreciation for their purchases, customers received a ZIGZAG Sample Box filled with popular cosmetic samples sold on our platform and a random raffle prize. This strategy was intended to provide a memorable and buzzworthy shopping experience, effectively communicating the value of the ZIGZAG brand.
Fitting Room #1 - ZIGZAG Sticker Room
Fitting Room #2 - ZIGZAG Pink Room
Sample Box, Shopping Bag, Raffle
Collaborative Products - Key Rings & Pouchs
Key Results
Even though this was ZIGZAG's first pop-up store and there were some bumps along the way, it turned out to be a successful event. Right after it opened, it got a lot of attention from the press and was heavily covered(50+) , receiving positive feedback and reviews from many influencers and bloggers.
The items sold on the platform are mainly low-cost, fast fashion products, leading to lower average sales per customer. Therefore, while the total sales didn’t meet our expectations, the number of transactions was higher than expected, and higher compared to other competitor pop-ups.
Key Findings from the campaign & pop-up store
This is summarizes of our key observations from our latest campaigns. It identifies areas where we can make strategic improvements to enhance our performance and engage our customers more effectively. This analysis not only highlights our current successes and challenges but also prepares us for continued growth and better results.
1. Public Response to Messaging
-
People responded more to consistent brand messages than to specific product details, creating a connection.
-
Many quickly caught and shared the campaign’s concept.
-
The importance of choosing the right messages and messengers to appeal to our target audience.
2. Digital Media Use and Impact
-
While TV ads and billboards help with visibility, they are costly and hard to measure for effectiveness.
-
Digital media allows us to target our audience more accurately.
-
YouTube reactions were strong, especially positive feedback on influencer involvement which boosted organic views.
-
More opportunities for user interaction needed, such as challenges and hashtags.
3. Managing the Creative Process
-
Spent a lot of time on early creative stages, leaving less for later stages. Need better time management.
-
Not enough time for brainstorming new ideas after initial concepts, which could improve content quality and user involvement.
-
Other divisions need more time to collaborate, which should be considered in future projects.
4. Making Offline Stores More Effective
-
Big differences between pop-ups focused on experiences versus those focused on sales.
-
Managing stock and operations took more resources than expected.
-
Need strategies to deal with low sales per customer and limited space and resources.
-
Should include features that highlight what makes our online platform unique.
Platform Design
The Platform Design team is responsible for overseeing the system design of our products. This includes developing new systems and conducting review sessions to ensure consistency across design projects carried out by other departments, similar to the role played by Google's Material Design. The team consists of five members and works closely with project managers, engineers, and designers from various departments, facilitating organic communication and collaboration.
At ZIGZAG, we have been operating a design system known as ZDS (ZIGZAG Design System). In my role, I have been tasked with modernizing this system to align with the latest trends and technological advancements. Furthermore, I have taken steps to enhance the efficiency of the product design process, ensuring it is more streamlined and effectively managed. This initiative is crucial for maintaining our competitive edge and fostering innovation within our design practices.
Centralized Model
Due to complex organizational structure, I felt the need to redefine our team's positioning. I persuaded the executive levels to adopt a centralized model, explaining how our team functions within the organization and the benefits of choosing this model.
In this centralized model, the Platform Design Team manages and oversees the design system. This setup helps keep the system consistent and widespread. On the other hand, the users of the design system, including designers and engineers, give feedback based on their actual usage. This feedback is crucial for making the design system more practical and efficient, and it directly contributes to improving the system's design.
Design Review Process
Previously, a complex organizational structure was formed, focused primarily on the business's main objectives, with various purpose-driven departments. Many designers were distributed across teams with different objectives, and without a properly established communication system, there were limitations in unifying the design under a single design language.
Due to reviews being conducted only within the department in charge, there was a frequent miscommunication among related departments that were not initially shared with. To address this, we have redesigned the review process to extend beyond individual departments to include company-wide levels and senior leader syncs, ensuring that insights and feedback from teams with different goals and purposes are proactively applied.
UX Design Process - Before(L) & After(R)
UX Design Review Principles
-
Providing optimal UX that achieves both product usability and business objectives through feedback and discussions based on various perspectives from the teams with different objectives.
-
Formalizing the review process to sync the 'purpose and direction' of each project with UX Committee and the project related leads at the initial stages.
-
Prevent delays in the development schedule by minimizing issues that are found late in the product development process.
To establish a new design process, we introduced System Design Office Hours and two review sessions.
The Steering Review quickly shares designs in progress with all divisions, checking early on that the direction aligns with each department's objectives and expectations.
Projects that can be completed with urgent or minor revisions bypass the Approval Review and proceed directly through the Fast Track.
If critical revisions are needed, these proceed to the Design Development phase. Topics that require deliberation with the design system are addressed in the Office Hour stage in collaboration with the Platform Design Team. Both of these attend the Approval Review to ensure everything is on track.
The UX Committee is composed of the top leaders from each division, designed to discuss the opinions of each department and collaboration possibilities during all design reviews. Leaders are tasked with sharing the review in a top-down manner about which projects are underway and who is the designer within their departments, allowing designers to focus solely on their tasks.
Interaction and BX is quickly growing their influence in the products. Because interaction and BX design address different challenges than product design, it's essential to have a dedicated brainstorming process. To ensure these areas are emphasized and properly managed, we have created separate tasks specifically for Interaction and BX within the design process.
Design System
*Due to company regulations regarding sensitive information, I am not unable to display detailed information.
At that time, the company was at a turning point. Previously, we focused on rapid expansion and growth driven by business objectives to quickly increase our market influence. Now, we have shifted our focus to solidifying our business position and growing alongside our users by prioritizing consistency and productivity efficiency. As part of the Platform Design Team, we decided to update ZIGZAG's design system, ZDS.
We were developing version 3.0 of ZDS. Although it was labeled as a new version, it was essentially just an update of the legacy system that originated from the simple canvas of version 1.0, which was no longer suitable given the current technology and standards. Due to considerable feedback about its poor usability internally, a significant update was necessary to enhance absolute efficiency. With ZDS 3.5, the team transitioned all components that were previously used as simple copy and paste elements into automated Figma components, reviewed all components to make them easier to use and more flexible for our needs.
We also initiated the ZDS 4.0 project. Like Google Material's ink and paper metaphor, we aimed to establish our own unique design metaphor to redefine the rationale and principles behind our UI design. This was part of our strategy to lay the groundwork as a market leader in user experience, steering the industry forward with our distinctive approach.
Entire Screen Audit of ZIGZAG app