Newtro culture

[3] Newtro is an amalgamation of trends of the modern and retro eras (namely, the 1980s and 1990s) in all fields of life, such as fashion, music, movies, beverages, food, architecture, electronics, etc.

[1][2] With the shifting South Korean demographic turning to comprise mostly of 30- to 50-year-old individuals, media and marketing cater to the audience of this age group by making more TV shows with the Newtro concept.

Family sitcoms like "Unstoppable High Kicks", musical programs, such as "Inkigayo", and more are the highlights of Newtro on YouTube.

[9][10][3] These television shows, snacks and drinks, and designs awakened nostalgia for Koreans belonging to that era, and provided a new experience for the present youth generation.

The home appliance industryis targeting customers by increasing the lineup of Newtro designs; items such as refrigerators, washing machines, and water purifiers have been redesigned.

[18][15] Eulji-ro (Korean: downtown Seoul, named after the general Eulji Mundeok (Hangul: 을지문덕) [19] offers an industrial, historical taste of Korea with historical machine and tool shops, printing shops, and traditional houses being renovated into restaurants which store a mix of traditional interior design with modem eateries and bakeries.

[15][20] Releasing (non-consumable) products or goods in retro style has also surged in popularity among businesses in South Korea.

Accessories used in 90s are also gaining popularity: plastic bead key-chains, phone decorating stickers, board games, Polaroid cameras, and traditional hair pins with modern designs all have been making a comeback.

[citation needed] The Newtro trend has brought back clothes, footwear, accessories from the past three decades.

Bell-bottom pants, bold prints, vintage boomer jackets, baggy jeans are back in style.

[15] Since, October 2020 Korean schools have started incorporating Hanbok-inspired uniforms; which was introduced by Hanbok Advanced Center.

[23][24][15][4] MBC is now "re-debuting" the superstars of 1990s and 2000s- Rain, Lee Hyo-ri and Yoo Jae-suk were all re-released as a" mixed group".

[12][15] Since the 2020s, there has been a rise in k-pop groups coming up with a jewel case version of newly released albums, especially associated with SM Entertainment.

Newtro culture has brought back retro packaging and redesigns to various food and drink products.

Remodeled, renovated, developed streets following the Newtro trend has been identified by the Korean Tourism Organization (KTO).

Professor Kyun-Sik Jang of the Department of History at Chung-Ang University pointed out the dangers of consuming the Newtro culture without historical awareness.

[30] Some are concerned that the area which become a Newtro Landmark only borrows tradition as a commercial concept, but loses its original identity.