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K-pop costumes more than just replicating design
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Acknowledgement: In 2018, one of Chandra Surhartono’s designs won a competition held by Blackpink. (Personal Collection/Courtesy of Chandra Surhartono) (Personal Collection/Courtesy of Chandra Surhartono)
Costume makers catering to K-pop dance cover artists are steadily gaining attention and growing business.
K-pop stars are known for donning designer items with styles their fans would like to follow. But most of their items have a hefty price tag and most fans do not usually have the same access to high-end brands. For example, a fur coat by Dan Cassab worn by Blackpink's Jennie costs US$3,600. Due to the high price, some fans opt to buy more affordable costumes replicated by local artisans, including in Indonesia.
The K-pop market in Indonesia is a big one. According to Twitter, Indonesia is listed under the top 20 countries tweeting about K-pop. The rampant exposure to Korean culture has influenced many aspects of Indonesian life. This includes the beauty standard of the South Korean idols, as explained by Azmiyah Nabilah Irsan, a Korean language and culture graduate from the University of Gajah Mada.
"A lot of these fans are looking forward to South Korea’s beauty and fashion items. Selling replicas of K-pop costumes is a smart marketing move because it can promote South Korean popular culture faster. In fact, some of the dance competitions often require the participants to dress similar to the K-pop groups [whose songs they are dancing to]," Azmiyah noted.
"Moreover, sometimes dressing like their idol is another way to appreciate them,” Azmiyah said.
William Anthony Yanko, a popular culture professor from RMIT University in Melbourne, added that sometimes fans used the opportunity to dress up as their idol as a way to build connections.
"For some people, it's almost like building interconnectivity that seems to dissolve the time and space between the fans and the idols. Thus, it makes the idols more approachable to the fans," William explained.
