The blessing of a dried fish

Inside Shinsegae’s mission to bring Korean heritage into modern life

On May 16th, The Gallery Seoul gained a unique perspective on Korean heritage through the lens of the Shinsegae Heritage Project. Creative Director KyungEn Kim shared her vision and the journey her team at Shinsegae is exploring to position one of Korea’s leading luxury brands as an active platform for cultural preservation.

At first glance, it may have seemed more like a cultural discussion than a leadership talk. But as I listened to KyungEn speak, I found myself thinking that in a time shaped by rapid digitalisation, globalisation, and increasing polarisation, this kind of work feels more essential than ever. The question of how to navigate this becomes an essential leadership task: figuring out how to bring history into dialogue with modernity. Through the project, KyungEn and her team are documenting, preserving, and making heritage more accessible - creating bridges between generations, between past and present, and between cultures seeking deeper understanding of one another.

KyungEn spoke about how there is an inherent language within people; our culture, rituals, and history. But if we do not actively maintain that language, parts of it slowly disappear.

Of course, this work belongs in museums, schools, and public institutions. But preservation only goes so far when heritage remains separate from daily life. When it enters the modern home through one of Korea’s largest retail brands, people engage with it differently. It becomes part of everyday life rather than something reserved for specialists or enthusiasts.

Through the project, K-everything reconnects to its roots, and to me, that feels essential. Many traditions only make sense once we understand where they come from. Without context, they can seem outdated or even strange, but understanding changes the conversation.

One example was the beautiful strings Shinsegae creates to celebrate the birth of a baby. Historically, strings were hung in doorways to protect newborns from outside germs before antibiotics existed - both a sign of joyful news and a quiet act of care. Suddenly, what might otherwise seem purely decorative reveals layers of history and meaning.

But Shinsegae is not a museum. The task is not to preserve heritage exactly as it once was, but to ask how it can evolve and continue to live within modern society. Traditional objects and practices are reinterpreted into contemporary pieces that still carry their original meaning and history. It's a delicate balancing act of leadership and through the talk it was clear that KyungEn could do this successfully because she truly respects both the original crafts and the history and brand of Shinsegae. Understanding and loving both makes the task possible.

And perhaps that is the essential question: how do we allow heritage to evolve without allowing it to disappear?

For Shinsegae, this work is very literal. But for leaders more broadly, whether in the private or public sector, understanding the heritage we inherit may be essential to building a future that is both modern and sustainable, while also keeping our inherent cultural language alive.