Vintage Shopping in Hongdae | Seoul, Korea
As you will soon discover, I am in love with thrifting and hunting for vintage treasures. I started when I was little and got all my clothes from Goodwill, and have continued my entire life! In this post, I'll bring you to three vintage shops in the Hongdae and Hapjeong neighborhoods here in Seoul. They're quite a bit pricier than a thrift store so hold on to your wallets, and let's take a look!
First stop is Hantage! Hantage has two locations in the Hongdae area, but I visited the one closest to exit 8. The owner (who I’m pretty sure is a model in his free time) was still setting up the shop so as I browsed he was hustling about bringing rack after rack of clothes to display outside. He politely smiled in a non judging way when he caught me filming myself in an array of miniature sunglasses.
There is a pretty balanced mix of mens and womens clothes at Hantage and is much more street fashion based. If you’re looking for a trenchcoat or graphic tee or even beat up converse,they’ve got it! I ended up with a grass woven bag for 20,000won.
Bonus touch is the leaky ceiling that they’ve fixed using an umbrella to catch the water, and as the umbrella is now leaking, there is a bucket under that as well. Places with character!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hantage_official/
Map: https://goo.gl/maps/NhmQLFtnsAF2
Hours: 12pm - 11pm
Next I hopped on a bus to Hapjeong and headed in a direction I’ve honestly never been to before - south of the station! I know the area between Hongdae and Hapjeong Stations like the back of my hand, but the southern area between Hapjeong and Sangsu was pretty much a mystery to me until this visit. The little street my boyfriend and I found later this day needs its own post because it was such fun!
Once I reached Hapjeong I headed into La Retro. Now be warned, this is a seriously expensive little shop. Everything in there was gorgeous and in great condition, but the prices on the jewelry made my jaw literally drop. I had my eye on a cute little wrist watch until I saw its four hundred dollar price tag.
There is a sales rack though, which had shirts for 20,000won and dresses for 30,000won. I ended up getting a skirt and the kind woman running the store didn’t seem to mind that I spent a near hour in the fitting room trying on all the beautiful clothes.
Other clothing items were between 80,000won to 50,000won, so if you’re wanting to treat yourself and you aren’t on my baby budget, there really are gorgeous items here. Even if you just want to look around and be surrounded by beautiful things for a while, the owner is delightful and won’t pressure you or hover!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laretro_seoul/
Map: https://goo.gl/maps/W4xVpSdDW7o
Hours: 12:30pm - 10pm
I was so excited while shopping that I forgot to take a photo! Credit to Page One's official Instagram for this one :)
Last stop is my absolute favorite vintage store in all of Seoul, Page One. The prices are all completely reasonable, the selection is amazing, and the store itself is gorgeous. I was there on a particularly warm April afternoon and the windows were wide open letting in a gentle breeze which was almost begging me to pick up more sundresses than I had already lugged into the dressing room.
This is strictly women’s clothing as well and the amount of clothes in this space may seem overwhelming in the best way possible. I don’t know who does the buying for this place but I am not exaggerating when I say I would buy each and every piece of clothing there if I could.
I got what is shaping up to be my new favorite summer dress for 28,000won and I can’t wait to live in it all season long. If you’re in the Hongdae area and want a reasonably priced, gorgeous selection of vintage clothes, please put Page One at the top of your list.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pageone__official/
Map: https://goo.gl/maps/jJxcLV3DFey
Hours: 2pm - 10pm
Here's a video tour:
Happy shopping!