Yahoo Lifestyle Yoon Ahn Teams Up With Chase Sapphire Reserve for Seoul Campaign
Chase Sapphire Reserve’s newest campaign featuring Ambush’s creative director, Yoon Ahn, is spotlighting the city of Seoul through her unique global lens.
The credit card campaign titled, “Seoul Is in the Details” showcases Ahn enjoying her home country’s vibrant capital of Seoul through food, history, culture and energetic spirit. As part of the campaign, Ahn shows how card members connect and immerse themselves in local culture including a curated selection of hotels and card benefits such as lounge access.
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“The part that inspires me about Seoul is the intersection between the past and the future,” Ahn said in a video clip. “Korean people take pride in their identity. Fashion has become a big part of style in Seoul. They are quick to trends and they know how to enjoy clothes.”
Ahn told WWD that travels influence her work in many ways — “everything’s been constantly evolving at a much faster pace, especially out in Asia. Places like Seoul and Tokyo are constantly in a flux of like changing going into new phases with so many trends.”
The company said that Ahn was a fitting partner for Chase Sapphire Reserve with her “passion for tapping into creative inspiration” with her lifetime of travel and global upbringing — she was born in Seoul, raised in Seattle, attended college in Boston and is now based in Tokyo. Alongside her own brand Ambush, Ahn has collaborated with the likes of Louis Vuitton, Nike, Uggs, Coca-Cola, was appointed Dior Homme’s jewelry design director by Kim Jones during his tenure and more.
“Yoon — a true cultural insider with a strong global vision — was the perfect partner for Chase Sapphire Reserve given her passion for tapping into creative inspiration through her lifetime of travel and global citizenship,” said Leanne Fremar, global chief brand officer of JP Morgan Chase. “By exploring Seoul through her eyes, Yoon also showcases how card members can connect with and immerse themselves in local cultures through itineraries curated by Reserve travel designers.”
Always an “avid traveler,” not just because of her fashion and jewelry design work, Ahn said that she’s always had a “genuine curiosity” for the world and is constantly “participating in local activities on the road.”
Ahn noted that people’s interest in South Korea has sparked for different reasons — K-pop music, Korean dramas and movies, food, fashion, skin care and beauty and more have continued to capture the world’s interest in Korean culture.
“Whatever the entry point, people will enjoy the city because the energy is great and it’s there’s so many things out there are that much more advanced,” Ahn said. “Things operate and are done differently [in South Korea] that I don’t think you get to witness in the States. That’s the beauty of traveling and seeing things.”
With one of Ahn’s friends’ a local expert and a Michelin-star restaurant recipient, she’s often introduced to the best spots in the city through her; in September, Ahn went to the organic restaurant and another Michelin star holder, “A Flower Blossom on Rice.” But no matter where Ahn is, she loves street food — a massive part of Korean culture — and night markets, frequenting “the smaller mom and pop shops” and wherever else she sees locals frequenting.
Beyond her affinity for South Korea — which she is constantly traveling to for work — Ahn said some of the unique places she’s traveled to include Johannesburg for its talented youth music scene and Yellowstone National Park for its vast quietness and direct connection to nature.
As for how the years of Ahn’s travels have shaped her as a designer and person? Witnessing what’s happening on the ground in person is important to her. Talking to locals about what they’re into, soaking up the energy of the place she is in and appreciating the beauty of the world is what keep Ahn going.
Despite all the mass consumption of small bits of information happening via the Internet, Ahn wants to see “people travel more to appreciate the diversity of humanity.”
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