Founded by Jay Oh and Hankook Kim
Founded in 2011 in Seoul, South Korea.
Seoul, South Korea
Gentle Monster is a South Korean brand specializing in sunglasses and optical glasses, that embraces a fresh perspective on eyewear design through diverse collaborations and innovative experimental approaches.
As the eyewear brand is originally from there, it has been said that the brand is cheaper in South Korea compared to its stores in other countries. However, this is not fully confirmed.
Gentle Monster rarely offers sales or promotions; for a straightforward reason: the brand produces limited quantities of each design, which leads to swift sell-outs of new edition models.
Gentle Monster takes pride in not only its boundary-breaking approach but also the high-quality construction of its products.
The brand Gentle Monster was founded in 2011 in Seoul, South Korea by Jay Oh and Hankook Kim. The brand set out to challenge traditional notions of eyewear design.
The first Gentle Monster store opened in the trendy district of Apgujeong in Seoul.
The brand started to get international recognition and starts their global expansion by opening of its first overseas store in Beijing, China.
In February 2016, the brand's first US store opened on Grand Street in SoHo, New York City. This was followed by its second US store opening in downtown Los Angeles in October 2017.
Collaborations have become a defining feature for Gentle Monster, bringing the brands exposure to a mainstream audience by their partnerships with Ambush, the Ambush x Gentle Monster collaboration, and with Jennie Kim of the K-pop group BLACKPINK.
Gentle Monster x Maison Margiela collaboration drops at their flagship store in NYC.
Gentle Monster releases their latest Jelly collection, consisting of five fresh styles, each presented in vibrant pouches reminiscent of Haribo gummies. These confectionery-inspired glasses gained rapid online popularity and selling out swiftly.