Why South Korea is golf apparel’s most major player

Do clothes make the player? The golf-obsessed country of South Korea seems to think so and, through the pandemic to today, has backed up the belief with their wallets.

While specific numbers are difficult to track, it’s estimated that golfers worldwide spend around $9 billion on golf apparel each year — and 45 percent of that is spent by South Koreans. (For those keeping score, the U.S. consumers’ share is around 25 percent of the global fashion pie.)

What South Koreans buy is youthful, trendy and, most times, expensive, and, with more and more luxury brands entering the space, golfers in the Land of the Morning Calm often drop more than $700 dollars (U.S.) for just a pair of trousers and a polo.

Traditional looks in Korea still indeed hold sway, thanks to stalwart apparel players like Titleist, Golden Bear, TaylorMade and Callaway. Other brands, such as Master Bunny Edition, Pearly Gates, St. Andrews and Amazing Cre, continue to see success with consumers in their 30s through 50s, especially the “business-man” set.

But with the pandemic came a sea change, igniting a boom in apparel activity and spending. It also affected design. With millennials and Gen-Z golfers suddenly flocking to the game during Covid-19, looks from trendy brands such as G/FORE, Malbon and PXG started flying off the shelves, thanks to the younger population’s preference for wearing golf togs wherever and whenever — not just on the course or at the range.

As you can see from the photos below, a legitimate blurring of the lines between golf and fashion now reigns in South Korea. The success seen in the lifestyle market has influenced even the most premium of fashion brands, including A.P.C., Lanvin and Philipp Plein, to launch golf apparel lines in South Korea.

Nike Golf — as you’d expect — also has a concrete fan base in South Korea, thanks to its more reasonable prices and the long-standing Korean perception that Nike is a quality brand for sports in general. But make no mistake — golfers south of the 38th parallel love their athleisure. Number one in this category is the Korean-born brand XexyMix, which has found a way to appease Gens X through Z in equal amounts. Acceptable for work, then a hop to a screen-golf facility once the whistle blows.

There’s an old adage that golf usually takes its cues from the U.S. and Japan. You can argue that Korea now holds that position in the wardrobe space. What you see here might be what you’ll be wearing very soon.