My, Your Suit Smells Terrific!
As Lee Soo-bum nears home after an evening out with the guys, he shimmies, shakes and occasionally rubs his chest.
At his apartment door, the 39-year-old film company executive sniffs, smiles in satisfaction and greets his wife. Although he has been drinking with colleagues in a smoke-filled bar, Lee doesn't reek of booze and cigarettes. In fact, he smells downright sweet.
Lee credits his fashionable beige wool suit. It smells like lavender, and the more he moves, the stronger the scent becomes.
"This new suit helps keep peace at home," Lee says.
The suit is made with fabric soaked in a chemical that contains scented microcapsules, which pop and release the odor when the wearer moves or gets bumped on a crowded subway train.
Three local fashion houses, LG Fashion, Essess Heartist and Kolon International, began selling the scented suits in major department and retail stores earlier this month.
So far, Essess has sold 2,500 pine-scented suits, LG 1,000 lavender suits and Kolon 660 peppermint suits. Without any television or print advertising.
All three makers say the scented suits are outselling their regular suit lines. Together, they sell about two million suits a year.
"Many people come to buy regular suits and end up buying the scented ones. They like the scent and the suits are not more expensive." said Suh Young-ju, a spokeswoman for LG.
Encouraged by the initial success, LG plans to ship some of the suits to its retail shop in Los Angeles. And Kolon plans to launch a TV advertisement, dubbed "a sweet encounter."
Sweet or not, some men just don't like it.
"I don't want to smell like a hotel bathroom," said Kwon Hyong-il, 27, a computer engineer.
Women's reactions are mixed.
"Maybe I will buy one for my husband. He often comes home smelling like an ashtray,'' said Song Myong-hee, a 37-year-old housewife.
"I would feel sick if I had to smell the same scent for days or weeks, no matter how nice it is," said Lee Jung-sook, 45, an insurance saleswoman.
The suits come in various colors and styles and cost between $300 and $420. The scent is supposed to last about three years, or 20 dry cleanings.