K-POP stores at Myeong-Dong 明洞

Hello Guys,

As you know I am in love with K-pop. So my main goal during my visit to Seoul, South Korea in December 2012 was to shop and 'hunt' for K-pop stuffs. Price was definitely the main factor that I will put more attention to. Since most of us will like to buy more K-pop official albums and merchandises with limited resource. [To maximize the usage of our money] :)

I will like to credit my friend and an article, KhaninKorea :MyeongDong Kpop Stores .
Since the article was written in 2011, so the purpose of me writing this article is to keep others up to date.
There are some changes to the Kpop stores mentioned in that article.

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I had came across more than 10 K-pop Stores during my vacation in December 2012.
I do agree that the 3 K-pop Stores which I gonna introduced will offer the best and most reasonably price in Seoul. Myeong- Dong will be the shopping heaven for K-pop avid fans especially if you visit the right shop.

By the way, every corner of Myeong-Dong, there will be shops selling cheap ,well known Korean Cosmetic products which are mostly endorsed by famous K-pop stars and actors like SNSD Yoona, Sandara Park, Yuri, Lee Min Jung, JYJ, Kim Hyun Jong  etc...

Besides Myeong-Dong, I found another shop located in HONGDAE which offer fair price too,
[the link] K-pop Store at HongDae

Frankly, I saw many K-pop stores eg. in Dongdaemun. which charge 5000 won more , for the same album which you can get at a cheaper price in Myeong-Dong Station Underground mall.

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I  bought K-pop items from those 3 stores. If you are searching for specific album or merchandise, it will be a good idea to visit those 3 shops,

Notes: there are many K-pop shops in Myeong-Dong; some located on the main street, underground mall or in a book shop. If you have much time to spent, you may want to visit most of them to compare the price.
I will advise those who are 'hunting' for limited / special / old/ rare edition of  K-pop stuffs; please consider buying it whenever you come across it in any other shops, which may charge more but still reasonable , because you may not be able to find it elsewhere.

Why do I buy K-pop Stuffs in Korea ?   I can get those items 'cheap' online.....
LINK :  5 reasons to buy K-pop stuffs in KOREA itself

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1. Get on the subway and transfer to line 4 (blue line)... Get assistance or directions from the locals or the information center if you are lose, they should be willing to help. :)

2. Get to Myeong-Dong station EXIT 5 & 6. You will see 3 rows of shop lots lining in front of you [Myeng-Dong Underground mall]

3. I will refer the 2 K-POP shops as Shop A and Shop B.
Shop A will be on your left and Shop B will on your right side when you view it from the Subway exit.
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 Shop A should be the same as Store #1 which was referred in that article.

QUOTE:

"Store #1

Location: on the left hand side of the underground mall

Notes: run by 2 guys; is smaller than store #2, has a lot more phone charms/wristbands

Price: Cheap; prices at store #1 and store #2 are either exactly the same or very similar and are the cheapest places to buy CDs and DVDs in Seoul (that I have come across). "

The shop sells quite a lot of key chains and light sticks.

This shop seems to be very popular, some old albums I was looking for were all sold out.

However, I bought most of my albums here including my Je t'aime KARA photobook.....

The guy gave me quite a lot of posters which I requested, since I bought  a lot from him :)

They probably will not give you discount based on the listed price but you can still request some free items and posters in return.

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Shop B may not be the Store # 2 mentioned since the layout is different and the shop is almost the same size as shop A but it is still located on the right side.

QUOTE:

"Store #2

Location: on the right hand side of the underground mall; it consists of 2 shops directly across from each other and is run by a couple and a younger male who occasionally stops by. 

Notes: has A LOT of stuff that store #1 doesn’t have; is bigger than store #1; most of the CDs that I look for (ex. SNSD) are a little bit cheaper here; I would recommend this store because of the selection of merchandise that they have and because the price is either the same as store #1 or even cheaper.   

Price: cheapest you will find in Seoul as far as I know; prices are very similar to store #1 and sometimes even cheaper. "

Based on this page Myeong Dong subway K-pop store , Store#2 was temporary relocated during the construction from August 2012 to December 2012.
This may explain why it looks different from the previous photos.

Anyway, when it comes to price, there is not much different from Shop A. However, I found  more old K-pop albums here like After School- VIRGIN album ...which are mostly sold out in other shops.

One thing good about this shop is that I can have After School Older album posters. The shop lady there will only give you posters that  related to the purchases. kinda Fair ... lol.

I bought my KARA iPhone case here,

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Shop C

It is still located at Migliore Department store but it is not in the basement anymore.
Only 2 floors of Myeong-Dong Migliore Department store are open ; Construction is going on when I visited it in December 2012.
SHOP C is relocated temporary to 2nd floor.
1. When you went into Migliore , take the escalator to the 2nd floor.
2. There will be a lot of shops selling cloth and shoes around you. Go to the far right shop lots and walk straight ahead until you saw the K-POP shop. It will be quite cramp there.

You can find some albums which are sold out or not found in the other 2 shops.

QUOTE:

"Store #3

Location: Migliore Department Store B1 (Basement floor 1). For this store, take Exit 6 and you should immediately see a tall department store to your left called Migliore. Go inside and take the escalator down one floor to B1. When you get off the escalator turn around and walk towards the direction opposite of where the escalator dropped you off (Ex. when the escalator ends, you are forcing the north direction, turn around and start walking in the south direction). Walk straight until you see CDs. 

Notes: run by an older couple who take turns watching over the store; they are both very nice people who always want to have a conversation with you; has mostly just CDs and DVDs and a few other goods (not as numerous as store #2). I don’t recommend this store because of the selection and price. 

Price: kind of cheap; it is still cheaper when compared to the big CD stores in Seoul but it is the most expensive out of the 3 stores in Myeong-dong."

*NOTE : Don't give up when it comes to asking for direction, some people may be impolite or unhelpful but if you persist, I believe someone will some how show you the way. You just need to be polite while asking for direction. :)

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All the best in shopping and 'hunting' for K-POP stuffs ;)

a K-POP store at HONGDAE 弘大

After enjoying the arts in Trick Eye Museum ( a site which Girl's Day film their HUG ME ONCE Mv), I some how came across a record shop which situated just right beside the main street.

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At that time, I hadn't visit the Myeong-dong Kpop stores yet. So my initial purpose is to know the market price.

However MHD Records sell more western artist albums and some cool headphones.

Actually, I made a right decision to buy my Limited Edition KARA Solo Collection there although it may charge a little bit more , because by the time I went to the Myeong-Dong Kpop Stores, Kara limited edition albums are all sold out. ... pheew... close call.

The shop lady gave me some posters for my purchases.

*Note: the price of the K-pop albums are relatively cheap in Seoul after visiting more than 10 different kind of K-pop stores.

Nonetheless, This store does not carry much K-pop albums, only the latest one or the one released this year.

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Have fun wondering around in Seoul :)

.  Myeong-Dong K-POP Shops  .

5 Reasons To Shop K-POP stuffs in KOREA

TOP 5 Reasons to shop for K-POP Official albums and merchandises in Korea
You may think it is cheaper to shop online. Yes that may be true but only when you compare it with your local CD stores.

If you are going to visit Korea, you should grab the opportunity to buy K-pop items with lower price.

1. Items are cheaper because you do not need to pay for shipment fee and some mark up cost by the seller.

2. There is variety of items which you do not get to come across easily online.
 For instances, you get  to choose phone cases and key chains out of hundred of different designs.

3. Get to collect more official posters while buying albums.
 The shop owner may give you some discount or even give you more posters if you buy more from them. (*this does not apply to large K-pop shops in Seoul)

4. Buy some autographed albums which will be very expensive if you purchase it from E BAY.

Rare K-pop items like photo cards or magazines which are out of print can be found in Korea.

5.  Explore and enjoy your visit to K-pop Store which sells variety of products. Korea, the place where K-pop is originated from.. duh ? lol?..Besides Skiing, I think the adventure in visiting such a kind of shop really amazed and made my day in Korea.


*Note : They don't really sell K-pop groups' Japanese release album and merchandises. They will often sell Taiwan edition for the Japanese release albums.

Please do some research and have in mind what you want to have and  must buy albums and merchandises.
This will Save time and make life easier for you when you reach that K-POP shops. :)