In recent years, K-pop has gained worldwide interest as groups like BTS, Blackpink, and Twice explode in popularity. The K-pop industry has been pumping out high-quality pop artists for decades, but in a world where Jimin has the number one song on the Billboard Hot 100, it may come as a surprise that most attempts at breaking into an English-language market saw mixed results. Now, even groups with little popularity in their native South Korea are able to maintain successful careers thanks to international fans.
With this burst in fandom power, the demand for K-pop merchandise has never been higher. When this author first started listening to K-Pop just over a decade ago, it was nearly impossible to find your favorite artists’ albums at a reasonable price, but now there are hundreds of places to purchase K-pop goods. Now, fans can find K-pop merchandise both in mainstream stores and in small online shops.
Kpop Exchange is one of those small stores. If you’re curious about what types of merchandise they sell, where they get their wares, and if they’re a trustworthy seller, we’ve got you covered.
Kpop Exchange, explained
According to their website, “Kpop Exchange is the first Kpop store in the Denver Colorado and Aurora Colorado area. It started with an online store and has expanded into so much more starting with the mission of creating an online accessible and affordable e-commerce purchasing option for those distant from physical stores.” Although Kpop Exchange seems interested in expanding to a physical store, they are currently online only (a pop-up in Aurora, Co ended in Jan. 2023).
The store sells official merchandise like albums and lightsticks, but also some unofficial merchandise like fan-made photocards and accessories. Kpop Exchange’s FAQ page states official items will be clearly labeled as such, and that most less-expensive items are unofficial merchandise. They ship worldwide via DHL, and all sales are final (damaged items are eligible for refund) in an effort to be more sustainable. According to a Colorado Times interview with founder Stephanie Joondeph, some of Kpop Exchange’s future goals are to create their own products and expand into other states.
Kpop Exchange has mostly positive reviews on their website and the reviews are recent. A Reddit user commented on a thread from 2021 about Kpop Exchange and stated they had a negative experience with the site. A more recent thread from Sep. 2022 had a more mixed response; some users received their purchase with no issues while others received a refund due to shipping delays. As per Kpop Exchange’s FAQ, most items ship from either Korea or China and can take four to six weeks to ship. Like all unofficial K-pop sellers, purchase with caution!
Published: Apr 6, 2023 02:07 pm