The Hyundai Daegu focuses on ‘culture’ and ‘arts.’ The renovated space has a total area of 5,047m2 of cultural and art-related facilities, four times more than the previous area of 1,267m2. The increased space for culture and arts is achieved by reducing the ‘store area’ by nearly 15%. Given that sales are usually proportional to store area, the reduction of store area is an unprecedented decision that has not been made by any major retail outlets in Korea.
The highlight of the newly renovated space of The Hyundai Daegu is ‘The Forum by Jaime Hayon,’ a 4,565m2 cultural space and cafe that occupies the entire floor at the top of the building. In collaboration with Jaime Hayon, The Forum occupies both the interior space and outdoor garden on The Hyundai Daegu’s 9th floor. The Hyundai Daegu’s bold attempt to dedicate an entire floor of a department store to a cultural space is an extraordinary endeavor, which has never been done by any department store in the country. In particular, it is an exceptional effort to establish an open space for the public outside Seoul in collaboration with a world-renowned designer. Like many countries around the world, cultural facilities in Korea are concentrated in Seoul, the capital city of Korea.