Local consumers browse K-webtoon titles and Artbox goods at the "2026 Germany K-Content Experience Center," which ran for two days from Friday (local time) in Frankfurt, Germany. [KOTRA]
Local consumers browse K-webtoon titles and Artbox goods at the "2026 Germany K-Content Experience Center," which ran for two days from Friday (local time) in Frankfurt, Germany. [KOTRA]

More than 1,000 local fans and consumers turned out for a K-content experience center in Frankfurt, Germany, as hallyu consumption — once centered on K-pop and drama series — broadens into IP-based goods such as webtoons, character merchandise, stationery and food and beverages.

KOTRA announced Monday that it operated the "2026 Germany K-Content Experience Center" for two days starting Friday at K-Pocket in Frankfurt.

The event was organized to reflect growing demand in Germany for K-webtoons, web novels and character IP. Seven South Korean content IP companies took part, setting up exhibition and hands-on program spaces where local consumers could engage directly with works and characters.

Germany ranks among Europe's major comics markets. In recent years, demand for digital webtoons and Korean-style webtoon print volumes has grown alongside the country's traditionally print-focused comics consumption. According to the Korea Creative Content Agency, German comics publisher Papertoons, founded in 2022, has specialized in publishing Korean and Chinese webtoons and comics. The Frankfurt Book Fair is also moving to expand its comics business and webtoon-related spaces this year.

The venue featured exhibition spaces built around webtoon and character universes, photo zones, social media events, and booths offering IP collaboration goods and food and beverage experiences. Organizers said young local visitors responded strongly — many came not just to view content but to purchase character merchandise and immerse themselves in the worlds of their favorite works.

KOTRA highlighted the event as an attempt to connect K-content with consumer goods exports. Products based on content IP — spanning webtoons, animation, film and artists — lend themselves to repeat purchases driven by fandom. In Germany, consumers who discovered K-pop and K-dramas are increasingly extending their interest to character goods, novelty stationery and food and beverages.

Among the participating companies, Artbox joined as a recipient of the "2026 Overseas Expansion Support Project for Retail Companies," run by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Artbox showcased stationery and novelty products using its own character IP and gauged the response from German consumers.

Steiner, a manager at Papertoons — a Frankfurt-based distributor specializing in K-webtoons — visited the event and said demand for collectible print volumes is growing rapidly alongside online webtoons in Germany, one of Europe's largest comics markets, adding that Korean webtoons stand in a class of their own in terms of popularity. "We hope this experience center, designed to let local consumers immerse themselves in webtoon universes, will open the door to expanded IP collaboration opportunities in characters, goods and beyond," Steiner said.

A corporate social responsibility initiative also took place alongside the event. Artbox donated 200 sets of character school supplies — valued at 6 million won ($3,990) — to the Waisenhaus Foundation, a child welfare facility in Frankfurt. KOTRA said it plans to support the social contribution activities of South Korean content companies through the donation ceremony, and to deepen cultural exchange between Korea and Germany and expand community cooperation through hallyu.

The experience center was part of KOTRA's "2026 Service Hub Support Project," which uses overseas trade offices as launch pads for service companies, providing local marketing, buyer outreach and promotional support. KOTRA said it will continue expanding local touchpoints to help K-webtoons and character IP break into the European consumer goods market.

Kim Yeon-jae, head of KOTRA's Europe regional headquarters, said K-content in Germany has evolved beyond emotional consumption — watching and listening — into a core driver of consumer goods exports including merchandise and retail. "This is a significant shift in the conservative European cultural market," Kim said. "We will actively put our European trade offices to work as forward bases for K-service expansion, providing close support so that promising companies can establish themselves in the European market."


kwater@heraldcorp.com