Taj Mahal Inspires Korean Designer Baek JinJoo’s Big India Foray

New Delhi: For Korean fashion designer Baek JinJoo, India is not merely another overseas destination on the global fashion map. Her India story began with an emotion — a powerful encounter with the Taj Mahal that, in her own words, became the starting point for discovering a new direction for her brand.

In an exclusive interview with Sanjeev K Ahuja, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Community News (ACN) Network, during her recent visit to India, Baek JinJoo, founder and creative force behind the Korean contemporary womenswear brand Studio Di Perla, said the monument left a lasting impression on her artistic and business imagination.

“When I first visited India, the most unforgettable moment was standing before the Taj Mahal. It was not simply about seeing one of the world’s most famous landmarks — it was a deeply moving experience that is difficult to fully express in words,” Baek said.

For the Korean designer, the Taj Mahal was not just a monument of beauty. It became a symbol of India’s history, culture, craftsmanship and timeless aesthetics.

“To me, the Taj Mahal represented far more than beautiful architecture; it embodied India’s history, culture, craftsmanship, and a timeless sense of essential beauty that transcends generations,” she said.

That experience, she added, changed the way she looked at India. Instead of seeing the country only through the lens of scale, population or consumer potential, she began to view it as a place where heritage and modernity live together with unusual force.

“In that moment, I began to see India not merely as a large market, but as a truly dynamic and extraordinary place where traditional beauty and modern sensibility coexist,” Baek said.

This emotional connection now forms the basis of Studio Di Perla’s ambition to make a foray into India soon. The brand, known for its minimalist yet bold fashion language, sees India as a natural fit for its philosophy of creating new styles beyond boundaries.

Studio Di Perla’s brand identity is built around the idea “to communicate beautifully and harmonize with clothes.” The brand describes itself as one meant for customers with sophisticated sensibilities who create new styles through their own distinct values and philosophies. This idea of fashion as a form of communication, rather than mere dressing, is central to Baek’s India vision.

Baek said India’s youth, creative energy and layered cultural identity strongly resonate with the values her brand pursues.

“That experience became the most fundamental reason for choosing India. I believed that the value our brand pursues — creating new styles beyond boundaries — deeply resonates with India’s young and creative consumer culture,” she said.

According to her, India’s strength lies in its ability to hold together tradition and innovation, memory and modernity, craft and individuality. This combination, she believes, opens possibilities far beyond ordinary market expansion.

“India’s unique energy, where tradition and modernity, heritage and innovation exist together, naturally connect with our brand philosophy and reveal possibilities far beyond simple market expansion,” Baek said.

Studio Di Perla’s India plans come at a time when Korean culture, fashion, beauty, music and lifestyle trends have gained visible traction among young Indian consumers. However, Baek’s approach appears to go beyond riding the Korean wave. She is positioning Studio Di Perla as a brand that can enter into a cultural dialogue with India’s own aesthetic traditions and evolving urban style.

“In India, Perla envisions its target audience as modern consumers who seek to express differentiated values through their own identity and style. We do not simply sell clothing; we propose values and attitude,” she said.

The brand’s portfolio reflects this identity-led approach. Its past collections include themes such as Boudoir and Anarchism, while its 2026 Spring Summer collection, Brutalism, takes inspiration from the architectural idea of something raw, solid, structural and honest. The collection applies this rough yet disciplined design language to clothing, expressing beauty within imperfection rather than chasing perfectly polished aesthetics.

This philosophy could find a strong audience in India’s emerging fashion spaces, especially among consumers looking for individuality, confidence and a sharper global design language. Studio Di Perla’s product concepts include commercial, basic and hardcore lines, allowing the brand to balance sales potential with its deeper avant-garde identity.

The commercial line is designed as a wearable version of the hardcore line, while the basic line focuses on comfortable jersey and T-shirt styles that work well with street fashion and appeal to consumers in their 20s. The hardcore line reflects the brand’s identity and philosophy more strongly, especially for consumers who prefer avant-garde, deconstructed, darkwear and gothic looks.

Baek said the India entry would not be limited to opening a shop and selling garments. She wants the brand to create a deeper experience that reflects India’s own cultural sensibilities.

“For this reason, we wanted to connect with India’s diverse cultural sensibilities and create a new language of style together. While preserving the essence of our brand, we aim to build a deeper and more meaningful brand experience through a balanced approach that reflects India’s lifestyle and cultural sensitivity through local collaborations,” she said.

“Our store will go beyond being a retail space — it will become a place where customers experience the philosophy of the brand,” Baek added.

Studio Di Perla already has a record of domestic and international visibility. Its distribution presence includes Korean platforms and retail names such as W Concept, Naver Designer Window, OTC Closet Share, Lafunette, Hyundai Department Store, Shinsegae Department Store and Lotte Department Store. Overseas, the brand has been associated with showrooms and stores across China, the United States, Russia, Canada and other markets.

The brand has also participated in major fashion events and exhibitions, including ASEAN-Korea Fashion Week and the Fashion Trend Fair, strengthening its visibility in the Korean and international fashion ecosystem.

Baek JinJoo’s own background reflects a strong international fashion foundation. She graduated from Carlo Secoli Pattern School in Italy in 2003, worked in the design studio of Gianluca Capannolo of KRIZIA between 2005 and 2007, graduated from Marangoni Fashion School in Italy in 2005, and later completed fashion design studies at Ewha Womans University Graduate School of Design in 2014. She currently leads Studio Di Perla as its CEO.

This combination of Korean creative discipline, Italian fashion training and global exposure gives Baek a distinctive lens through which she sees India. For her, India is not a peripheral market but a serious cultural and strategic destination.

“In the long term, we see India not merely as an overseas store, but as a key strategic hub for expansion across the Asian market,” she said.

India, she emphasized, has the potential to become a cultural platform where Studio Di Perla’s philosophy can grow in new directions.

“India is not simply a new market; it is a strategic cultural platform where our brand philosophy and future vision can expand even further,” Baek said.

“We are not simply opening a store in India; we are initiating a brand experience where new cultures and values come together,” she added.

Baek’s India ambition also reflects a larger shift in Asia’s fashion economy. With Indian consumers becoming more experimental, design-aware and globally connected, several international brands are beginning to view the country as a space for creative collaboration rather than just retail expansion. Korean fashion, with its mix of minimalism, structure, street influence and cultural confidence, is particularly well-positioned to engage India’s younger urban consumers.

For Studio Di Perla, the India move is therefore both commercial and cultural. It is about entering a market, but also about finding a new language of style shaped by two Asian sensibilities.

For Baek, the memory of standing before the Taj Mahal continues to guide this vision.

“The first emotion I felt at the Taj Mahal was not just a travel memory — it became the starting point that allowed me to discover a new possibility and direction for our brand,” she said.

“That unforgettable inspiration now continues as a vision to expand our philosophy into a broader world through the unique cultural platform that is India,” Baek added.

As Studio Di Perla prepares its India journey, Baek JinJoo’s message is clear: the brand is not coming to India simply to sell fashion. It is coming to begin a conversation — between Korean design, Indian cultural depth and a new generation of consumers seeking identity through style.

About Baek JinJoo

Baek JinJoo is a South Korean fashion designer and the creative force behind Studio Di Perla, a contemporary womenswear brand known for its bold, minimalist and avant-garde design language. With strong academic and professional training in Italy and Korea, she has shaped Studio Di Perla around the philosophy of communicating beautifully through clothing and allowing wearers to express their own identity, values and individuality.

• Name: Baek JinJoo
• Nationality: South Korean
• Profession: Fashion designer, entrepreneur and creative director
• Brand: Founder/CEO of Studio Di Perla, a Korean contemporary womenswear brand
• Brand Philosophy: Studio Di Perla is built around the concept “to communicate beautifully and harmonize with clothes.”
• Design Identity: The brand caters to customers with sophisticated sensibilities who create new styles through their own distinct values and philosophies.
• Creative Approach: Baek JinJoo’s design language combines minimalism, chic styling, avant-garde expression, deconstructed silhouettes, darkwear and gothic influences.
• Major Collections: Studio Di Perla’s collections include Boudoir, Anarchism and the 2026 Spring Summer collection Brutalism.
• Brutalism Collection: Inspired by architecture, the Brutalism collection reflects something raw, solid, structural and honest, discovering beauty within imperfection rather than pursuing perfectly refined aesthetics.
• Product Lines: The brand has commercial, basic and hardcore lines, balancing wearable fashion with strong identity-led and avant-garde pieces.
• Target Consumers: Studio Di Perla appeals to modern consumers who express differentiated values through personal identity, style and attitude.
• Fashion Education: Baek JinJoo graduated from Carlo Secoli Pattern School in Italy in 2003.
• Professional Training: She worked in the design studio of Gianluca Capannolo of KRIZIA from 2005 to 2007.
• Further Education: She graduated from Marangoni Fashion School in Italy in 2005.
• Korean Academic Background: She later graduated from Ewha Womans University Graduate School of Design in Fashion Design in 2014.
• Domestic Presence: Studio Di Perla has been associated with Korean platforms and retail names such as W Concept, Naver Designer Window, Hyundai Department Store, Shinsegae Department Store and Lotte Department Store.
• International Presence: The brand has had overseas distribution links in markets including China, the United States, Russia and Canada.
• Fashion Events: Studio Di Perla has participated in exhibitions and fashion platforms such as ASEAN-Korea Fashion Week and Fashion Trend Fair.
• India Vision: During her recent visit to India, Baek JinJoo said her encounter with the Taj Mahal deeply inspired her and made her see India not merely as a large market but as a dynamic cultural platform where tradition and modernity coexist.
• India Ambition: She sees India as a strategic hub for Studio Di Perla’s Asian expansion and wants the brand’s India presence to go beyond retail by creating a deeper cultural and fashion experience.
• Creative Belief: Baek JinJoo does not view fashion only as clothing, but as a way to communicate values, identity and attitude.