The South Korean resale market is hot. But don’t take our word for it. Just look at Naver, the South Korean internet giant that bought up Poshmark for a whopping $1.2 billion. Or StockX, which started operating in South Korea in 2021 with an authentication center in the Gyeonggi province.

“Having an authentication center on the ground allowed us to roll out a range of new features…including expanded shipping options for sellers, lower fees and faster shipping for buyers, and in-market customer support teams,” Greg Schwartz, StockX co-founder and COO, told Retail Brew via email.

• Other South Korean resale players, like Kream and Musinsa, are also growing their presence. The South Korean sneaker-resale platform, SoldOut, for instance, just raised $33 million earlier this year.
• Currently, the South Korean resale market is worth around 500 billion won ($346.2 million), and is only expected to grow over the next couple of years.

But what’s behind this influx of secondhand marketplaces in South Korea, and what do retailers need to do to stay ahead?

Young guns: Roana Bianca Brito, strategy director at global innovation consultancy R/GA Singapore, credits the rising interest to South Korean Generation MZ—a term used to define the combination of millennials and Gen Z in the country—who are looking for quality items at lower prices. “This consumption sensibility, together with global inflation concerns, is what’s driving the secondhand market demand,” she said. “The fact that the practice helps the environment, and that they can enjoy a little profit on the side if they choose to re-sell,” are fun bonuses.

Keep reading here.—JS

As anyone who’s ever put almond milk in mac and cheese knows, sometimes substitutes work and sometimes they just…don’t. Determining which recipes can still work with a dairy substitute is the foundation of the latest campaign from Oatly’s editorial team, a documentary-style series called “Will it Swap?” writes Marketing Brew's Katie Hicks:

The five-part series follows characters like a body-building/wrestling couple (who have a hard time pronouncing the brand name) making stroganoff and a man in Brooklyn making his father-in-law’s cream puffs.

[Jeremy Elias, global editorial director at Oatly,] said the goal was to help “chip away at” the hesitancy people may have about using plant-based milks in things besides coffee, tea, or cereal.

This campaign is the latest from Oatly’s editorial team, whose job, Elias said, is trying to not “sound like every other brand.”

Keep reading here on Marketing Brew.—KH

If you work in healthcare, you know it is a constantly changing industry. Luckily for you, this is our specialty. Introducing Healthcare Brew, a biweekly Morning Brew newsletter focused on the global healthcare industry. From tech and mental health to pharmaceuticals and hospital administration, everyone has something new to learn.

Subscribe here.

This editorial content is supported by ConnectRN.

Today’s top retail reads.

Candy man: Candy packages are getting smaller due to both shrinkflation and brands striving to keep calorie counts low. (the Washington Post)

Package deal: With high inflation and price increases from the likes of FedEx and UPS, some retailers are re-thinking their holiday shipping strategies. (the Wall Street Journal)

Coffee break: The campaign to unionize Starbucks stores around the country has ebbed and flowed over the last year, but its impact has reached far beyond the coffee chain itself. (the New York Times)

Your brand, our voice: Ahem (*clears voice*). We take pride in what we put out into the world, and that includes crafting custom branded content for our beloved partners. Tell your brand’s story in new and exciting ways with the Morning Brew Creative Studio.

What happened in the world of retail this week in…1858 and beyond? Retail Brew takes you way, way, way back.

• On October 24, 1939, nylon stockings went on sale for the first time.
• On October 25, 1955, the Tappan Stove Company sold the first home microwave.
• On October 28, 1858, Macy’s founder Rowland Hussey Macy opened his first store.
• On October 28, 1955, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates was born.

Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.

• FDA and industry groups push for changes to front-of-pack food labels
• Adore Me’s efforts to become eco-friendly isn’t landing with shoppers
• Ride-along: What one DHL drive thinks of the carrier’s electric-vehicle fleet