Space Marketing Pioneer: The Rise of Experiential Stores

According to Kurt Lewin, a social psychologist at MIT and member of the American National Training Laboratories (NTL), we retain information more effectively through direct experiences—listening to sounds or seeing physical objects—rather than reading about them. This principle gave rise to one of the biggest retail trends today: experiential stores.

Many furniture brands operate offline stores, where customers can see and try products in person. The real challenge is how experiential stores differentiate themselves from traditional retail outlets.

• Traditional offline stores: Primarily focused on direct product sales.

• Experiential stores: Designed to entertain and engage visitors—even if they don’t make a purchase. Pop-up stores and flagship stores are prime examples.
  
  

Pop-Up Stores as a Space Marketing Trend

In South Korea, pop-up stores have surged in popularity as a fresh form of space marketing. Naver’s keyword search data shows that searches for “pop-up store” have grown by over 400% in the past seven years. In Seongsu-dong, often called the “Mecca of pop-ups,” 89 pop-up stores opened in August 2024 alone.

Source: OpenAds Sweet Spot article – Naver DataLab statistics

These experiential spaces are often designed to be Instagrammable. Visitors take photos, share them online, and naturally spread word-of-mouth marketing.

Pop-Ups Are No Longer Enough: The Need for Differentiation

Ironically, because pop-up stores have become so widespread across industries, they are no longer seen as novel. Consumers have grown accustomed to them. To keep space marketing fresh, brands must now focus on differentiation:

• Retail Therapy: Spaces that provide healing and comfort, not just products. Beyond shopping, these spaces offer cafés, art galleries, and relaxation areas—think of “The Hyundai Seoul” or “Starfield.”

• Collaborations with Other Brands: Joint projects introduce fresh concepts and unique brand images that surprise consumers.

But brands must avoid chasing trends blindly. The real challenge is to ask: “How can we deliver our brand philosophy through experiential spaces?”

Source: The Hyundai Seoul

Space Marketing Case Studies: Shinsegae Casa

One of the most notable space marketing case studies is Shinsegae Casa. By combining retail therapy with brand collaborations, Casa delivers differentiated experiences that reflect its core philosophy.

As a result of bold space marketing initiatives, Casa reported annual revenue of 269.5 billion KRW and 1 billion KRW in operating profit in 2024, a 14.6% increase in sales compared to 2023. After years of operating losses, Casa finally achieved profitability.

1. Shinsegae Casa Apgujeong Flagship

The Apgujeong store is more than a furniture shop—it’s a lifestyle experiential store blending space, furniture, art, and food.

Built around the theme of an “Italian apartment,” the store feels like stepping into a high-end home, complete with unique design concepts.

Source: Shinsegae Casa Official Website

One highlight is the Furniture Art Gallery, where Casa’s designer furniture is displayed alongside art pieces. Visitors perceive Casa’s furniture not just as products, but as works of art.

Source: Shinsegae Casa Official Website

The store also includes specialized showrooms, such as a Lighting Gallery featuring premium global lighting brands.

Source: Shinsegae Casa Official Website


In a unique collaboration, Casa partnered with OUYA Espresso Bar to design a menu inspired by its best-selling Campo sofa.

Source: Shinsegae Casa Official Website

2. Collaborative Showroom Stores

Casa has collaborated with Samsung Electronics, Starbucks, and Wine & More to create innovative showroom spaces.

Source: Shinsegae Casa Official Website

These spaces are designed like real-life homes, tailored for newlyweds, families, and different household sizes.

Source: Casamia Digital Plaza, Seocho Main Store

Shinsegae Casa’s Unique Twist: VR Tours

Beyond retail therapy and brand collaborations, Shinsegae Casa has introduced another distinctive form of space marketing: Archisketch’s in-store VR tour service for showroom visitors. By using VR tours, Casa creates a new kind of experiential store that clearly conveys its brand philosophy.

Let’s walk through the VR tour from a customer’s perspective. After an in-store consultation, the staff uses 3D software to recreate the visitor’s actual home layout. In other words, a potential customer’s home becomes an experiential store of its own. The result is a familiar yet novel space that delivers a fresh, memorable experience.

Source: Naver blogger “ShuShuShunShun” – Review of Shinsegae Casa Apgujeong Store

Shoppers can place Casa furniture on their home floor plan and render it in VR. Seeing products on the sales floor is useful, but placing a sofa in your actual floor plan and testing it in VR is even more persuasive.

You can see exactly how your home would look and whether the flow of movement works. During the VR tour, customers come to view Shinsegae Casa not merely as a maker of stylish furniture, but as a brand that creates spaces suited to their homes and enhances everyday comfort. VR tours communicate Casa’s brand value without compromise.

Through VR, customers can visualize Casa furniture inside their own homes.

Even for a large brand like Casa, it’s unrealistic to turn every location into a flagship-level destination like the Apgujeong store. With VR tours, however, ordinary showrooms can still deliver differentiated experiences. As shown in the review above, many visitors also take “proof shots” after their VR tour and share them on social media.

Moreover, space marketing that relies on pop-ups or flagship stores is typically concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area. Because Archisketch’s VR tour is online-enabled, customers who can’t visit in person can still experience the showroom remotely—anytime, anywhere.

Source: Naver blogger “ShuShuShunShun” – Review of Shinsegae Casa Apgujeong Store


There are more space marketing case studies of brands building loyal customers with Archisketch in offline environments. One example is Hi-Mart, a leading electronics retailer in Korea.

👉 How Hi-Mart grew operating profit by 275% during a downturn—Archisketch in action

If large-scale budgets for pop-ups or flagship projects are out of reach—or if you want a new, more efficient way to improve conversion—consider a more cost-effective solution to win customers. Leave an inquiry below, and Archisketch will propose solutions to supercharge your offline showroom marketing.

👉 Want to differentiate from competitors? Contact Archisketch for adoption.