The Korean “Long Padding” Thing Is Already Over.
The long padding trend is getting literally curtailed.
Look at the new campaigns from Korean brands this fall. Those aren't knee-length coats anymore—they're hitting mid-thigh, sometimes higher. The industry is calling them "half padding" (하프패딩), and they're positioned as the season's innovation. But here's what's actually happening: the silhouette that dominated Korean winters since 2018 is quietly being shortened.
Korean fashion media has been asking "is long padding over?" every winter since 2019. And every winter, people kept wearing them—because nothing else was warm enough for Seoul's walking culture. The long coat wasn't trendy anymore, but it was necessary. It went from aspirational purchase to infrastructural item, the winter equivalent of owning an umbrella.
But infrastructure doesn't sell new inventory. So brands are emphasizing technical innovation—nano-yarn technology, lightweight fills, "cloud-like" materials that maintain warmth with less bulk. The press releases focus on the engineering. What they're not emphasizing: the coats are getting shorter.
The half-length format solves the mobility problem without sacrificing core warmth. You get protection from pelvis to neck, but your legs are free to navigate subway stairs, climb hills, move through crowded streets. For a city where walking is primary transportation, that's not a minor consideration.
The pattern is clear in the campaigns below. These aren't long coats styled to look shorter—they're structurally mid-length designs. Brands are betting that Korean consumers are ready to trade full-coverage for practical movement, especially now that the long padding has become ubiquitous enough to feel default rather than special.
The long padding isn't disappearing. But its dominance is being curtailed—both literally and figuratively.
Some relevant data points are below.
From TIN News:
I'll take off my winter padded jacket and wear 'Clouds'
Crocodile Lady Launches Cloudy Light 'Nube Down'
Use of yarn with advanced composite radiation technology, light fit, and excellent resilience
”Crocodile Lady, a representative women's clothing brand of fashion group Hyungji (Vice President Choi Joon-ho), is launching a new winter product called "Nube Down," which maximizes warmth and drastically reduces weight, targeting customer demand for early cold.
"Nube" means cloud in Spanish, and "Nube Down" is a product characterized by a light fit as if wearing a cloud. Reflecting the demand of consumers who want a light outerwear with excellent warmth, this product uses advanced nano yarn while maintaining a rich and voluminous design unique to heavy down.
As a filling material for the Nube Down, yarn with advanced composite spinning technology was used. The fine spiral structure effectively traps more air layers between the fibers, enhancing thermal insulation and lightweight. It is more resilient than existing ultra-fine fibers, making it convenient to manage.
The design is composed of mocha and cream as the main colors, and a hood design with rich fur is added to create a cozy style even in the cold wind in winter. In addition, the waist belt design is designed to create a slim style.
Fashion group Hyungji plans to expand and release Nube Down products to major women's clothing brands including Crocodile Lady, Chatren, and Olivia Hasler.
"Unlike last winter, which was unusually warm, the early cold came, reflecting the demands of customers who want a light and active down jumper with high warmth," a fashion group Hyungji official said. "We expect to get a good response from customers who want a lightweight outerwear with a richness such as a heavy down."“
From TIN News:
Lee Si-young and Go Wook, PAT and 'FW Winter Pictorial'
Peace beyond comfort and sophisticated winter lifewear
Season key item 'Hybrid Down, Mulard Down, and Jungbonding Sweater' revealed
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"PAT," a casual brand developed by Independent Moon (CEO Kim Hyung-gun), unveiled a 25FW season winter pictorial with actors Lee Si-young and Ko Wook.
Under the theme of "A Moment In Time," the campaign contained the message of "Time to Find My True Peace," and the two actors delicately expressed the sensibility of "Peace" with their own eyes in a background where natural texture and architectural structures are harmonized, completing a relaxed mood unique to PAT.
With 78 years of heritage and technology, PET presents a sensitivity age-less style this season with "peace beyond comfort" as its core value. Based on stable colors and sophisticated silhouettes, Formal Line proposes elegant comfort in everyday life with a simple design and a sophisticated sense, and Active Line presents a practical style that fits climate change and various lifestyle patterns with lifewear considering functionality and activity.
There are three key items for this winter season: "Hybrid Down," "Mulard Down" and "Jungbonding Sweater." Hybrid Down is an item that combines fillings for each part to provide both warmth and lightweightness, and it features a three-dimensional silhouette and sporty mood.
"Mulard Down" is applied with a new material called "Mulard" filler, which is light, warm, and boasts a comfortable fit with a slim-looking fit and straight material. "Lungbonding Sweater" is a winter daily item that provides a soft and cozy fit by napping the lining and adds sensuous points with a two-tone gradation pattern.
PET proposes a relaxed daily look that encompasses generations with a lifewear that adds sensitivity and delicate sensibility. In addition, as a total life brand based on age-less sensibility, it will continue to showcase sophisticated and practical styles.
Meanwhile, all products in the 25FW winter season campaign pictorial will be available at the official online mall DLM Mall and offline stores nationwide.