These clues come together into a coherent narrative, which then evolves into a collection. Ultimately, a collection is a record of what I’ve seen, how I’ve interpreted it, and the way I’ve expressed it.

For instance, one morning on my commute, I was listening to NCT Mark’s “Golden Hour” when the phrase “the moment you shine most perfectly” jumped out at me. The moment the song’s message aligned with the product concept I’d been developing, I felt certain—this feeling could become a collection. These flashes of insight are what eventually become the seeds of our collections.

Looking back, I’ve been able to create several successful editions by drawing on diverse sources—collaborations with the fashion brand GROVE, the Golden Hour Edition inspired by K-pop, and the Japan Sakura Collection that tapped into seasonal trends across markets. Today, I want to share the behind-the-scenes story of one that really resonated with customers: the development of the Be Velvet Cover Cushion Happy Crush Edition. Through my work as this “Collection Master,” I’ll walk you through how an idea captures trends and becomes a finished product.

1 A Second-Year Bestseller’s Challenge: Building a “Universe” Around the Product

When a product enters its second year, I always face the same question:
How do we revitalize a core item that’s lost its freshness?

The Be Velvet Cover Cushion New Class hit this same challenge in its second year. As one of the brand’s main revenue drivers, it needed consistent sales and customer interest—simple price promotions clearly weren’t going to cut it.

At the time, I noticed something happening in the K-pop scene: customers were obsessed with “universes.” It wasn’t just about consuming products anymore—people wanted to participate as protagonists in a narrative world. And I was confident that with espoir’s sensibility and agility, we could bring this universe concept to life in the makeup category in the most dynamic way possible.

2 Good Thing + Good Thing = Really Good Thing: The Magic of Trend Collaboration

The Be Velvet Happy Crush Edition was born from combining two Gen Z and Millennial trends under the umbrella of building a universe.

• The first was the “keyring” craze—keyrings had become fashion accessories that expressed personal taste.
• The second was the “fortune charm culture”—sharing positive messages and good vibes.

I decided to merge these two elements, creating not just decorative items but “lucky keyrings” as collectible merchandise. Since makeup is essentially an “act of choosing your mood for the day,” I saw how a keyring symbolizing good fortune could connect directly with customers’ emotional states. By adding the playful element of fashion accessories, customers could extend their daily makeup experience into an expanded universe.

Once we locked in the intuitive collection concept “HAPPY CRUSH—An Armful of Happiness,” the design process moved swiftly. Instead of our usual red, we boldly incorporated high-saturation green and purple patterns to maximize vibrancy, while applying red to details like the character’s nose to balance freshness with brand heritage.

3 ISFJ Empathy Fairy ‘HAPP’: The Power of Giving Personality

The key to breathing life into the keyring and creating a universe was character development. I searched for “a name that conveys happiness while being cute when pronounced in Korean,” and that’s how HAPP was born.
As a Brand Manager, I worked with the Marketing Communications team to give HAPP a concrete personality. We made HAPP an ISFJ type—a devoted friend with maxed-out empathy skills.

• Personality building: HAPP wasn’t just cute merchandise but a friendly companion by the customer’s side.
• Communication strategy: Using casual, conversational language on Instagram as if HAPP was posting directly.

This emotional connection strategy led customers to spontaneously create hand-knit bags, character glasses, and other accessories for HAPP—what they called “HAPP-Kku” (decorating HAPP). The power of storytelling and character created deeply immersive engagement.

We also placed large HAPP sculptures at key stores in Seoul and Busan to expand the offline experience. These became spontaneous photo zones, playing a decisive role in establishing HAPP as both a “brand icon” and a “friend.”

4 Universes Are Forever: From Happy Crush’s HAPP to Plumpies’ JOE

HAPP’s successful universe didn’t end as a one-off. It naturally extended into Plumpies, our plumping product collection, where a new character, JOE, was introduced.

JOE was created by connecting the plump lips product benefit with the concept of “joy,” becoming HAPP’s reliable friend.

This experience wasn’t just about “one successful collection.” It gave us strategic confidence that a well-developed character universe can maintain vitality within a brand and expand across various product lines. It was also the moment we confirmed espoir’s potential to continuously build a brand universe at the collection level.