Public image of Cheongdam-dong
A town of luxury stores, rich people, and drama. |
A wide media coverage of Cheongdam-dong depicts the place as a luxury town. K-drama series such as Cheongdam-dong Alice, Cheongdam-dong Scandal, and I Live in Cheongdam-dong all had Cheongdam-dong as a backdrop that is full of luxury brand stores, rich people, and celebrities. Although exaggerated to some degree, a part of Cheongdam-dong definitely has that aspect; for instance, Cheongdam-dong is famous for "Fashion Street" (a street from Cheongdam station to Galleria Department Store is packed with luxury brand stores such as Cartier, Louis Vuitton, and Burberry), entertainment companies such as SM, JYP, and Cube, and many small-scale yet fancy private galleries.
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But is it really? |
While it is true that a part of Cheongdam-dong is full of brand stores, K-Pop hubs, and galleries, it tends to get overly generalized, mainly due to skewed media portrayal. In fact, a large portion of Cheongdam-dong is composed of residential area, where ordinary people live their day-to-day lives. They live in apartment complex such as Hyundai apartment, Samick apartment, and Woosung apartment, which are usually formed near parks or schools. Although the image of luxury town is true to some extent, it is important to not forget that for some, this place means home.
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