Seoul Design Week draws 670,000 visitors as city expands global reach

Seoul, Korea - November 2, 2026 - The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Design Foundation (CEO Cha Kang-hee) announced that Seoul Design Week 2026, held from Wednesday, Oct. 14 to Sunday, Oct. 25, wrapped up successfully, drawing 670,000 visitors over its 12 days.

This year, the festival expanded its stage from Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) to 150 design spots across five districts of Seoul. A total of 871 companies and brands, 370 designers and 353 university students took part, energizing exchange between the design industry and emerging talent. Through the Seoul Design Award, which received 1,204 projects from 91 countries, and a series of international exchange programs, the event connected Seoul's design scene with the world and laid the groundwork for cooperation leading into the World Design Congress to be held in Seoul next year.

The event carried added significance as it marked 20 years since Mayor Oh Se-hoon declared "Design Seoul" in 2006. Attending the opening ceremony on the 14th, Mayor Oh looked back on what the city has achieved over the past two decades in elevating the city's stature and improving citizens' lives through design. He outlined a vision to bring design even closer to everyday life, to realize "Seoul, the Special City of Quality of Life," and to leap forward as a global city that leads world design trends.

Industry exchange programs connecting design brands with consumers, and young designers with companies, drew particular attention at this year's event.

The DDP Design Fair, co-hosted with 29CM, brought together more than 80 brands under the theme "A Market Full of Taste," showcasing a wide range of products and drawing 35,000 visitors over five days.

Through brand-led experience events and purchase-linked programs, the fair gave consumers a chance to experience design products firsthand, and gave participating brands an opportunity to gauge consumer response and explore new sales channels.

Collaborative programs connecting future design talent with companies were also held.

At the Special Hall for University Collaboration Programs, design teams from 20 universities and more than 100 student designers presented products and content developed around real challenges set by companies. Through hands-on training, expert mentoring and exhibition planning, the students gained industry experience, while the companies were introduced to the fresh ideas and perspectives of young designers.

This year, Seoul Design Week also extended its stage from DDP to locations across the city. The "Seoul Design Road" linked 150 design spots across five districts - Dongdaemun, Seongsu, Yeonhui, Seochon and Apgujeong - allowing citizens to experience a wide range of design in everyday spaces.

In Seongsu, the event presented "Seoulness," a reinterpretation of Seoul's daily life and spaces through design, while in Yeonhui it ran the "Design Open Studio," opening design studios, architecture firms and exhibition spaces to the public.

At DDP, exhibitions continued to introduce the creative processes and design experiments of designers from Korea and abroad.

"Collective Seoul," featuring 10 Seoul-based design collectives and more than 140 designers, and "Studio Practice," which showcased the work of eight design studios from six countries, presented a range of currents in contemporary design.

Cooperation with overseas design institutions also expanded through exhibitions and exchange programs involving Italy's design education institution POLI.design and Spain's food design studio FONDO, among others.

Seoul Design Week also broadened the scope of global design exchange through programs involving design experts and international organizations from Korea and abroad.

At the Seoul Design Conference, held under the theme "ThinkMakeChange," designers and corporate representatives from Korea and abroad discussed the role of design in the age of artificial intelligence (AI), changes in future industries and the potential of human-centered design.

At the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) circular design program, participants discussed the role of design in embedding resource circularity in industry and everyday life, and shared directions for global cooperation with officials from the World Design Organization (WDO) and others.

In particular, the "World Design Congress 2027 Seoul Preview" unveiled the official brand identity (BI) and the slogan "Think, Make, Change" for the World Design Congress to be held in Seoul next year, sharing Seoul's design vision with the world.

Building on the results of this year's Seoul Design Week, the Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to further expand global design exchange through the 2027 World Design Congress and to strengthen support for Seoul's design companies and talent to advance onto the world stage.

About:

Established in 2008, the Seoul Design Foundation works to improve the quality of life of Seoul citizens by spreading design culture and strengthening the city's design industry. The foundation operates Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), which opened in 2014 and has become one of Seoul's landmark design destinations. It also runs Seoul Design Week, the DDP Design Fair and the DDP Design Store, and supports young designers through the Seoul Design Startup Center. Through these programs, the foundation aims to expand the global reach of Seoul's design brands and K-design.

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Company Name: Seoul Design Foundation
Contact Person: Seoul Design Week Secretariat
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Country: South Korea
Website: https://www.seoul-designweek.or.kr/

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