Working to Restore Trust in the Fashion Industry
Musinsa said on the 25th that it has completed a full inspection of blend rates for 7,968 down and cashmere items sold by brands on its platform.
After controversy over down and cashmere blend rates erupted late last year, Musinsa launched the inspection on Dec. 16 under its Safe Transaction Policy. The company wrapped up the process about 100 days later.
Musinsa confirmed appropriate test reports from accredited labs for 4,577 of the 7,968 items under review, representing 57.4% of the total.
For roughly 43% of items that didn’t have submitted test reports, Musinsa bought samples and sent them to accredited labs. Those tests found that 20% of those items violated the Safe Transaction Policy’s ban on false or exaggerated claims. Across the entire set of 7,968 items, about 8.5% had incorrect labeling for down or cashmere blend rates.
Based on the findings, Musinsa suspended sales of all products from brands that violated the policy, imposing bans that ranged from 5 to 35 days.
During the inspection, Musinsa allowed brands to present explanations to avoid unfair damage. It initially suspended sales of 215 items without test reports that were found to violate the policy. After further submissions and reviews, 23 of those items—about 11%—were cleared and determined not to have violated the rules.
To help brands improve quality control and certification, Musinsa partnered with the nation’s leading clothing testing, certification, and analysis institutes. As the first fashion platform to do so, it signed quality-strengthening agreements with the three major domestic institutes—KOTITI Testing & Research Institute, KATRI Testing & Research Institute, and FITI Testing & Research Institute—and plans to offer regular training and seminars for its brands.
To tackle unfair competition in the fashion industry, Musinsa recently met with the Korea Intellectual Property Office and proposed coordinated responses through government–private cooperation.
Musinsa also plans a major overhaul of brand onboarding standards and review procedures. Existing brands on the platform will be required to submit mandatory quality documentation to continue selling. The company will also implement ongoing monitoring of other fashion materials that need stricter quality control beyond down and cashmere.
A Musinsa spokesperson said, “We moved quickly and transparently to protect customers’ trust and to sound the alarm about how serious blend-rate issues are across the fashion industry. All stakeholders in Korea’s fashion sector, including Musinsa, are working earnestly to rebuild that trust.”
