BTS opens pop-up store in Seoul for the first time

Welcome to the House of BTS. In the heart of the ritzy Gangnam neighborhood in Seoul, the seven-member K-pop boy band BTS has opened a pop-up store in Seoul.

The store, which opened on October 18, will be open for 80 days — until January 5, 2020.

The store showcases about 200 types of merchandise, which are displayed in the main showroom in the basement. To keep fans coming back, new merchandise based around BTS’s hit songs like “DNA,” “Mic Drop,” “Fake Love,” “Idol” and “Boy With Luv” will be introduced every week.

New cartoon versions of the BTS members were introduced on the same day as the opening of the pop-up store. The characters can be found on swag like notebooks, plush toys, luggage tags and memo pads.

On the opening day, a huge line of fans waited outside the store. Some even came the night before, according to Beatriz Costa, 24, who came to the store around 5:30 a.m. on the first day. She told CNN that she saw about two dozen people already in line, some with mats and blankets.

“I really wanted to take a first look at it, also I was really curious about the things they were selling,” Costa said. “I really love experiencing things related to BTS … I think it’s okay to wait a few hours in the line.” She queued until the store opened at 10 a.m.

Both the inside and outside the store are themed pink, the same shade as on BTS’s album “Map of the Soul: Persona.”

The store has attracted both local and foreign BTS fans — known as ARMY (Adorable Representative MC for Youth) — to get their hands on and experience the latest BTS merchandise and interactives.

The House of BTS has four floors, with the main showroom in the basement where all the merchandise being sold at the store are displayed. The floor also has an AR kiosk where fans can take videos of themselves dancing with the cartoon versions of the BTS members.

The second and third floors feature a variety of interactive showrooms where fans can take photos and feel like they have jumped into BTS’s music videos.

For example, when fans enter the “DNA” theme room, the space background that was featured in BTS’s “DNA” music video is shown on three sides of the walls. Then, fans can use the touchpad in the middle of the room to move the background around.

“It’s such a new experience. . .a couple years ago they had one exhibition where it was little bit interactive, but it never (was) on such a large scale,” said J Heemangi, who traveled from Singapore for the BTS concert later this month.

Fans can take pictures in front of a replica set with a floor piano that was used by the BTS member Suga in the “Boy With Luv” music video, a collaboration with American singer Halsey. Additionally, the second floor also features a bus stop that appears in BTS’s book “The Notes.”

“I like all the music video set[s], and all the interactive activities,” said Lee Hung-joo, 29. “I think it really gives a fan a feeling that we are part of BTS.”

The food and beverage zone has been added, which will later feature a BTS-themed menu.

Later this month, BTS is holding their “Love Yourself: Speak Yourself [The Final]” concerts on October 26, 27, and 29 at the Seoul Olympic Stadium, which will be the grand finale to their Love Yourself tour that started in August last year.

For those who can’t travel to Seoul, the House of BTS will also open in Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka, Japan from November 23 to December 29.

BTS Pop-up: House of BTS, 34 Gangnam-daero 102-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea