Outdoor brand Patagonia has established an innovative brand initiative with its "Don't Buy This Jacket" campaign. The campaign received worldwide attention with a message to avoid excessive consumption in order to protect the environment. Shortly after Black Friday was unveiled in 2011, when the campaign was launched, Patagonia's sales were reported to have increased by about 30 percent year-on-year. Patagonia's sustainable consumption impressed its customers, and customers who agreed with its brand values and philosophy actively participated in the purchase. As such, a company's brand initiatives can deepen its fan base, strengthen its brand image, or even lead to sales effects. Let's take a look at three examples of how companies that are authentic to something successfully drive a brand initiative!

#Baemin and food documentary magazine

Magazine <F> is a food documentary magazine created by the Baedal Minjok with the magazine <B>1) team that produces brand documentary magazines. It is a bi-monthly magazine that was launched in March 2018 and publishes six volumes every year, and is currently closed for the last time in March of this year. If you think about Bae Min's various projects of B-level sentiment, such as the 'Chimelier' test to identify chicken and 'Bae Min's New Year Literature' to write short poems on the subject of food, the magazine they make seems to be full of interesting stories and counter-thinking ideas. However, contrary to expectations, Magazine <F> deals with food ingredients seriously and deeply enough to be seen as a food version of the original magazine <B>. Each issue sets an ingredient as a theme, and tells you how the ingredients are grown and produced, what types are used, and how chefs handle the ingredients.

Why has Baemin been running a magazine that exudes a gung-seo style for years? Chairman Kim Bong-jin and publisher Cho Soo-yong, who produced the magazine <F>, said in an interview with the newsletter, "The magazine <F> was created in the process of recruiting restaurants to deliver high-end food that could only be eaten in offline stores." After the publication of the magazine <F>, people admired, "Baemin deals with this!" and said that a change in the food culture has occurred. He added that he was able to gain the weight and expandability of the brand through in-depth stories about food ingredients. With the strong ambition of "I will make a book that fits on the bookshelf of Gordon Ramsay," he created an attractive magazine that prevents the desire to own it. I can feel Baemin's brand personality in doing what no one does.

#Musinsa and New Brand Discovery

Most platforms are already committed to bringing in popular brands. However, Musinsa is passionate about finding new brands. Musinsa runs a "partisan growth project" that allows new brands to repay their money when sales arise without any interest burden. It also runs the Musinsa Edition, which launches special items through collaboration between brands and artists. Musinsa Edition is playing a role as a cheat key to help new brands grow into famous brands. It was sold out within 10 minutes of its release, and the brand transaction value grew seven times. Why is Musinsa so focused on the growth of its own brands?

If you look at Musinsa's main consumers, you'll find the answer. About 60 percent of its customers installing the Musinsa app are in their teens and 20s. Those who are classified as Generation Z Generation 4) enjoy expressing their individuality and driving trends through startups that offer fresh and unique designs and differentiated values over existing large brands. According to McKinsey, Gen.Z. discovers more startups through social media than other generations, and they make four times more purchases through them. After all, Musinsa is winning a brand initiative called 'different trends' by aligning with the needs of its core targets who want to explore and experience new brands.

#Binggrae and Liberation Day

During this year's Liberation Day, Binggrae held a campaign entitled "First time to wear clothes for independence." He used AI technology to dress an independence activist who died in prison in Hanbok, not a prison uniform, and visited six surviving patriots to deliver appreciation plaques and customized hanboks. This is not the first time that Binggrae has shown particular interest in independence activists and people of national merit. In 2011, he established the Binggrae Public Interest Foundation, a non-profit public foundation, and has been supporting academic culture and distributing books to promote national culture. The Binggrae Public Interest Foundation has signed a business agreement with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs since 2018, the 100th anniversary of the March 1st Movement and the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, and has been carrying out a scholarship project for descendants of independence fighters every year. Why is Binggrae, who makes snacks and ice cream, doing his best to support independence fighters?

Chairman Kim Ho-yeon of Binggrae is married Baekbeom Kim Gu's granddaughter. Chairman Kim Ho-yeon has been helping descendants of independence fighters by establishing the Kim Koo Foundation at his own expense since 1993, before the foundation was established in 2011. Binggrae, the name of the company, is also derived from independence activist Ahn Chang-ho's "Binggrae Thought 6)", and the company itself has a symbolic meaning in honor of the spirit of the independence movement. This background and historical context of the founder are incorporated into the brand, and Binggrae has established itself as a brand that goes beyond the role of a company to practice social responsibility.

1) An ad-free monthly magazine that introduces balanced brands from around the world one by one every month
2) Three striped shirts designed by the brand Union Blue and the fashion YouTube channel Stalkers
3) 9 Shirts Collection Created by Brand BEHEAVYER and YouTube Channel Gonzo TV
4) Generations born from 1995 to 2010
5) McKinsey & Company, Mind the Gap / State of the Consumer 2024
6) Ahn Chang-ho is famous for saying, "We need to make a world where we smile with our love." Binggrae changed to its current name in 1982.

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