Seongsu Station to feature CJ Olive Young in name rebrand

CJ Olive Young won a bid to rename Seoul's Seongsu Station. The cosmetics retailer aims to establish a stronger presence in the area.

Tourists pose for a photo in front of CJ Olive Young's tourist bus, the ″Olive Young Express.″ [OLIVE YOUNG]

The name of Eastern Seoul's Seongsu Station will be rebranded to feature cosmetics company CJ Olive Young in October.

The company is working to establish a stronger presence in Seongsu-dong, popular among millennials and Gen Z, as well as tourists, for its vibrant fashion and beauty scene.

The Korean cosmetics and lifestyle retailer won an open auction for the naming rights to the station on the city's Line 2, the Seoul Metro announced on Aug. 9, with a bid of 1 billion won ($729,330) that significantly exceeded the estimated appraisal value of 299.48 million won. It was awarded a three-year contract with an optional guaranteed renewal.

A company spokesperson told the Korea JoongAng Daily that the cosmetics giant has not yet finalized the site's new name, but it is likely to be Seongsu (CJ Olive Young) Station according to local media reports.

CJ Olive Young is preparing to open a large store in the eastern Seoul neighborhood that will occupy floors one to five of Factorial Seongsu building. The first two floors will house a new retail concept store dubbed “New Retail Store.”

To be eligible for the auction, firms or institutions were required to have a store within one kilometer (0.6 miles) of the station.

“We participated in the open tender in preparation for the opening of our large-scale store in the area,” the CJ Olive Young spokesperson said. “However, we haven’t finalized the specific name to be used yet.”

BY YOON SEUNG-JIN [yoon.seungjin@joongang.co.kr]