There is a saying, “What goes around comes around.’’ Recently, restoration is in fashion. However, this restoration is different from before when people were just feeling nostalgic. The younger generations, who have not experienced past things, created a new culture by enjoying retro in a different way. This phenomenon is called ‘new-tro’. (This term was introduced in the book ‘Trend Korea 2019’.) It is a portmanteau of ‘new’ and ‘retro’, and it refers to restoration with a new look and function. Increasing sales of vintage furniture, which are likely to be found in 1950s movies, and snacks, which have been on the market for over 30 years, are examples of the new-tro phenomenon. -Ed.


  As mentioned above, new-tro culture can be found in daily life. Despite the inconvenience of printing pictures in a photo studio, some young people who were taking pictures with their cell phones at every moment now prefer film cameras. For this, analog filters with the unique colors of film cameras have become popular recently.
  Lee So-yeon (’18, Dept. of Chemical Engineering), said, “Film cameras have different charms compared to ordinary digital cameras. If I take the wrong picture, the digital camera can delete the picture right away, but the film camera can’t. That is why when I take pictures with a film camera, I focus on taking pictures because the film cannot be used twice. I like the sound of a camera shutter and the colors of the picture.” She said the biggest pleasure is to see her friends’ happy faces when handing out photos to them. Also, if you search for #filmcamera in SNS, there are many related postings. In this way, many young people are enjoying new-tro.
  Also, shops which have vintage sensibilities are in fashion. This was influenced by new-tro. Eulji-ro and Ikseon-dong are representative places to experience new-tro. In Eulji-ro, there are cafes and bars in an alley where a shabby hardware store and old paper factory are located. Young people now visit the area, which seems to be stuck in the 1970-80s, day and night. It is famous for its cafes decorated with antique furniture and is also famous for nomaek, a culture of eating dried fish with beer.

  Ikseon-dong can be called a sacred place of new-tro. ‘Mr. Sunshine’, a drama set in the time of enlightenment that was broadcast last year, was filmed in Ikseon-dong. In Ikseon-dong, there are many traditional Korean-style shops, and the classic mood of Ikseon-dong attracts the younger crowds. Also, in Ikseon-dong, there are some shops which rent out costumes from the time of enlightenment so that people can borrow the costumes and walk around the street in them. In addition to that, cafes use classic items like glass cups made by Delmont (In Korea, glass cups made by Delmont, the juice company, are a kind of symbol of the 1970-80s). Also, comic book stores, which make people feel nostalgia for the past, and secondhand stores, which sell old items like LPs, are also popular in Ikseon-dong.
  There is a festival where one can experience new-tro too at the Korean Folk Village in Yongin. It is hosting a festival called ‘The Play from Those Old Days’ from December 8, 2018, to March 24, 2019. In the Korean Folk Village, various event booths evoke 1980-90s memories, like a radio DJ booth, a photo studio which takes only black-and-white pictures and a classic stationery store. Also, in the festival, people can enjoy traditional street foods, including dalgona (a kind of taffy made of sugar), cotton candies and roasted sweet potatoes. People also can enjoy parodies of old commercials and dance performances.  
  More and more young people are enthusiastic about new-tro. Why do young people cherish   a culture that existed before their birth? Yoo Hyun-jung, a professor in the Dept. of Consumer Science, explained the reason, “Consumers instinctively have a good feeling toward what they’re familiar with. However, at the same time, consumers also yearn for something unusual and unfamiliar. The recent new-tro trend was started by people who are in their 10-20s and who haven't experienced retro styles, while the previous retro gain their popularity from nostalgia of familiarity. In other words, the core of new-tro is the novelty that comes from unfamiliarity. Also, young people are active and smart, so they don’t want to be stereotyped. They like modifying existing things on their own. That’s also one of the reasons for the popularity of new-tro. Young people enjoy bringing the analog age, which they’ve never experienced, to the present and adding their own color to it.
  Also, since the IMF in 1997 and the global financial debacle in 2008, the economy has worsened and unemployment has extended to young people, so the economic privation of the younger generations has grown. These days, young people no longer expect to be richer than their parents. That’s one of the reasons that young people choose cheaper items rather than expensive and luxurious items. The new-tro items attract young people because they provide the novelty of unfamiliarity. On the other hand, by experiencing something old, new-tro items remind the younger generations that, though the present times are difficult financially, the past was actually more difficult than the present. The young can console themselves by thinking that way.”

  New-tro has been consumed in various fields because it gives a rebirth to the past and it provides novelty to the younger generations. From mobile application to cafés, restaurants and even streets, new-tro has expanded its range, and people will be able to experience new-tro in more and more diverse fields. The CBT hopes that more and more people will experience new-tro and discover its pleasure.

By Lee Dong-ah | da39@cbnu.ac.kr
By Kim Chae-yeon | cy39@cbnu.ac.kr