Operates 161 stores in 16 countries, including the UK and Taiwan
“The goal is to grow a global photo life platform”
On the 8th (local time), King Charles III of England made his first visit to New Malden, Europe’s largest Korean town, and visited the instant photo studio ‘Life Four Cuts’ while experiencing Korean food and culture.
The first UK branch of Life Four Cuts, visited by King Charles III, was launched as a shop-in-shop at the ‘Cake & Shaved Ice Cafe’, which is frequently visited by the younger generation in the UK. While chatting with young British people in the store, he visited Four Cuts of Life and received explanations on how to operate the machines.
The New Malden branch is the first Life Necut to open in the UK. Four Cuts of Life opened in five additional stores, including Soho, Westfield Mall, and Liverpool Street. In particular, the Soho branch generates sales of over 100 million won per month.
Life Four Cuts announced on the 21st that it has expanded beyond Korea and has now opened stores in 15 countries other than the UK.
LK Ventures, which operates Four Cuts of Life, entered the overseas market for the first time in 2019. We succeeded in rapid localization through our experience in operating local stores and our strategy of forming partnerships with places that share the same intention in industrializing K-culture.
The Life Four Cuts UK store is also working with JS Holdings Group, which is spreading K-culture locally. Currently, the company is diversifying its methods of entering overseas markets, including direct entry into local markets, and is seeking to expand its market by opening 161 stores in 16 major overseas countries, including the UK, New Zealand, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Japan.
As Four Cuts of Life has attracted attention due to the popularity of K-pop and content, it has established a global strategy as a ‘K Culture Platform’ by working hard to expand content provision through various IP (intellectual property) partnerships at home and abroad. Currently, we are actively collaborating and providing character IPs with K-pop artists who are gaining great popularity overseas, such as Ive, Aespa, Rise, and Treasure.
They aim to grow into a representative platform where overseas fans can easily access Korean culture by collaborating with entertainment companies and beauty brands.
An LK Ventures official said, “The local response is good enough for overseas stores to reach the break-even point (BEP) within 6 months at the latest.” He added, “We are preparing to provide various services overseas, including the launch of the Life Four Cuts app, and aim to become a global photo life platform.” He said.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.