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7.22.2018

Seoul Searching | BT21 at Line Friends Store.

While walking along the streets of Hongdae, Yue and I came across a group of girls holding cute character balloons in their hands. Recognizing the characters right away, Yue gasped, "Mommy, it's BT21!!!" BT21 is a line of animated characters created by Kpop group BTS, in collaboration with Line Friends.

Just then, another group of girls - mostly foreigners this time - showed up, also with BT21 balloons in tow. "Where did they get those balloons?" I wondered, almost on the verge of asking one of the girls that we ran into. Before I could even unravel the mystery, Yue already figured it out, pointing at the huge Line Friends Store across the street.
Line Friends Store in Hongdae.
Almost every individual that walked out of the store had a BT21 balloon, and Yue wanted one for himself. Well, I wanted one, too - never mind if I'm already an ahjumma who's already in her late 30's. Lol.
BT21, the brain child of BTS in collaboration with Line Friends.
As we entered the store, I asked one of the staff how can I avail of the balloon. "Just buy anything, and we'll give you a balloon," he said. "Anything? Even a small item like that?" I asked, pointing to a Brown hair tie worth 5000 won. "Yes, anything!" he said with a smile. And with that, we made our way to the second floor to check out the BT21 goods.
Cute and cuddly pillows.
The BT21 characters were officially introduced in September last year, but it wasn't until December when Line Friends started selling BT21 merchandise. They were such a huge hit among BTS fans, that not even freezing winter temperatures could stop them from lining up in front of the Line Friends store to get their hands on BT21 items.
Yue with the BT21 gang!
He's standing beside his favorite character, Chimmy.
Thankfully, there was no pandemonium of that sort when we visited, nor did we have to fall in line to enter the store. Sure, the place was still crowded with shoppers (and I reckon most of them are BTS fans) but Yue and I were able to look around and take photos without a hitch.
Yue wanted them all, but baggage allowance does not permit, lol.
Kooky, Chimmy, and Mang.
RJ the alpaca.
Plushies!
Prices for the BT21 merchandise range from 2500 won to 55000 won. Plastic folders printed with BT21 characters were the cheapest, while black hooded sweatshirts with patches of Tata, Cooky, and Shooky were the most expensive. As far as I'm concerned, these items are still within the affordable price range, and if you're a hardcore BTS fan, the price really wouldn't matter anyway. Haha.
Passport cases, 12000 won each.
Tata is my favorite, because this represents V. :)
Yue and I finally settled on getting a gel pen, because that's the only thing we had a need for at that moment. Surprisingly, the staff gave us two balloons even if the Cooky pen that I bought (Tata was out of stock) only costs 3000 won!
En route to Digital Media City. Yes, we went all the way to DMC with those balloons, lol.
A few weeks later, we visited the Line Friends Store and Cafe in Itaewon. We were in the neighborhood to pick up the husband's sneakers at the Under Armour store and I asked the boys if we could swing by Line Friends because I wanted to see the cafe, which the Hongdae store did not have.
Line Friends Store and Cafe in Itaewon.
The cafe is located in the third floor, and their menu now includes BT21 drinks and desserts such as Chimmy's Pineapple Smoothie and Tata's Berry Sundae. We didn't get to try them though, as the place was packed (we went on a Sunday) and we wanted to eat at Dairy Queen anyway.
BT21 drinks and desserts.
The stairs leading to the third floor.
If you're a BTS fan, you'll find the Itaewon flagship store a lot more interesting since they have BTS memorabilia on display. For instance, these sketches of Koya by his creator, RM.
Koya by RM (also known as Kim Nam Joon).
And the statue of Space Robot Van, signed by all BTS members.
Signed statue of Space Robot Van.
In addition, the Itaewon store has more photo zones and carries more BT21 merchandise than its Hongdae counterpart. Now if you're an ARMY, I'm sure you won't leave either store empty-handed. We left Itaewon with another BT21 gel pen, lol.
Still no luck with Tata, huhu.
To get to the Hongdae Line Friends Store, take Hongik University Station (Line 2), exit 2.
To get to the Itaewon Line Friends Store and Cafe, take Itaewon Station (Line 6), exit 3.

29 comments:

  1. Those characters look so cute! I am a 30-year-old mom, and I totally would've wanted a balloon too! I'm sure my boys would love this entire line!

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  2. That looks like a fun time was had. The balloons are really neat too. Thanks for sharing all these amazing photos.

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  3. Omg! They were so cute. Great post. Hope you had a great experience because i loved reading your post. Thank you for sharing :)

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  4. I love those stairs! I had no idea BTS had created characters

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  5. Wow, there are so manycute characters here. I will be most delighted to shop along this street of Hongdae.

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  6. I have to say that I don't really know much about the famous BTS K-pop boy group but those BT21 novelty items are just so cute! If I'd go there, I'd buy those pretty passport cases!

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  7. These are so cute! You're so lucky! I'm a fan of BTS and I wanna see this too! Love your post!

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  8. Wow! This is such a nice place to visit especially to the fans of BT21. Loved the concept of the store and the design is so kpop thing.

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  9. Those are the cutest. I am not easily enticed by stuffed toys and cute things like that but now it seems that I would like to own one of each.

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  10. What a cute store. Living in South Africa we don't have those characters here, or even stores like that. Those stairs are fun. My kids would love the balloons

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  11. When I lived in Seoul I walked by the store in Itaweon every day. I think the stuff is cute but was always a little surprised at how much money people seemed to spend in the store. :)

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  12. Those characters are very cute, and looks like you got a very nice deal.

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  13. Oh my gosh, this place looks like a dream!! I've never heard of BTS before, but I'll definitely be looking into it now!

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  14. This place looks so fun! I love all the bright colours and the great little items they have. So glad you both got your balloons!

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  15. Well I'm a big fan of BTS, I'm an Army. So I'm attracted by this place.

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  16. What a nice shop. The ballons are so funny and kids can have goof time in there

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  17. I have never heard of this store, it looks so pretty! My kids would love all those stuffed toys!

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  18. This is the cutest store I have ever seen! I love all the cute characters :)

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  19. BT21 characters are so cute! I want them for my toddler and myself! :)

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  20. My two youngest sons are still into balloons. I can very much imagine doing everything you just did so they can get their hands on those ballooons, haha!

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  21. This is the first time I heard of BT21 characters. hehe. Ang cute. My kids will surely love this when they see it :)

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  22. Bakit sikat na sikat ang Line friends dyan sis? Anyway, every summer na ang #SeoulSearching na yan ha :D

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  23. I learned about BTS when I attended a Watsons event wherein they are the endorser of Mediheal face masks, pero di ko sila talaga kilala :(

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  24. I think now lang na-appreciate ng Pinoys ang Line characters. I remember when it was launched here a couple of years ago, only a handful of people knew the characters but in other Asian countries, super popular sya. My daughter and I also do get excited when we see a Line character shop or cafe when we travel.

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  25. Thank you, Mommy Czjai! I was reading this with my 5 yo son also checking the photos. If not for this one I will not be able to understand where those filter/icons in FB messenger's camera -- BT21.

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  26. We'd love to visit this place when we go to Korea! Bookmarking!

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  27. Not really a fan of BTS kase Naman naabutan is SJ, SHINee and 2 PM. pero ang cucute naman nung mga characters.
    Nakakatuwa bumili Nyan.

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  28. The cafe looks so cute esp with BT21 characters. Korean cafes indeed are full of dainty things.

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  29. Your posts really makes me want to visit Korea! Those plushies are soooo cute and I know my kids will love it there too!

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