Two company-owned stores open at Southern California shopping malls

An N.Cat store that opened at Del Amo Fashion Center in California last month [Ncat]
An N.Cat store that opened at Del Amo Fashion Center in California last month [Ncat]

Ncat, the company behind K-accessories brand N.Cat, announced Friday that it has opened its first and second US stores.

Ncat established a local subsidiary, NCAT AMERICA, last year in preparation for a direct entry into the US market. The first store opened Aug. 22 at Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance, California, while the second is set to open at Brea Mall on Saturday.

Both are major shopping destinations in Southern California, and the company said the openings mark a significant step toward breaking into large-scale US retail distribution networks.

The first store is an experiential outlet designed to reflect Seoul's shopping culture, offering trendy items — including jewelry, hair accessories and bags — at accessible prices. Customers were already lining up before the doors opened on launch day.

Starting next year, Ncat plans to launch a franchise program across the US, aiming to broaden the K-fashion experience among Generation Z and younger consumers.

Ncat launched the N.Cat brand in 2008 and began expanding its franchise business in earnest in 2011. It now operates more than 140 stores at home and abroad across 10 countries, including the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Japan.

"It is significant that we have established a foothold to bring Seoul's trendy sensibility and K-fashion accessories directly to American consumers," said Yang Jin-ho, chief executive of Ncat. "We will use the two California stores as a bridgehead for expanding into the North American market and prove the competitiveness of our K-fashion accessories brand in the United States."


spa@heraldcorp.com