What Does it Take to Be a Luxury Brand? Almost a Decade in, Genesis is Still Learning

To be a true premium brand is about more than market positioning or even the products and services on offer.

Ultimately, there’s an indescribable quality that sets the real ones apart from the pretenders, but having a rich history certainly helps. So what happens when there’s no history to rely on in the first place? Such is the dilemma facing Genesis, which was spun into a separate brand from Hyundai in 2015.

On one hand, an existence of less than a decade can bring with it questions of credibility. But then it also graces the brand with certain latitudes its rivals simply can’t afford. Genesis also happens to lean heavily into its Korean heritage, providing a unique take on luxury that’s intertwined with a thoroughly contemporary brand experience.

Home Market Advantage

Whether it be an emerging one like Genesis or an established one like Mercedes-Benz, any automotive brand worth its salt knows consistency counts, particularly in the early days. That’s why there are similarities in how each delivers its experience around the globe. For Genesis, plotting its course in Korea is easier than it is abroad, where it has a sizable head start at home compared to a country like Canada.

In fact, while the two markets are similar in size in terms of annual sales – last year saw 1.74 million passenger vehicles sold in Korea compared to 1.66 million in Canada – they present decidedly different fortunes for Genesis, which owns a massive 11 per cent market share on home soil.

That’s not its share of the premium space, either – it’s the entire auto market. For a bit of context, that compares to Chevrolet here in Canada in terms of total size. (In fairness, there’s more than a bit of favourability for homegrown brands in Korea, with the combined Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis brands that make up the Hyundai Motor Group pulling in an astonishing 90 per cent of annual sales.)

A Modern Dealer Experience

Genesis models of all shapes and sizes are about as common as coffee shops across Korea (seriously – there are a lot of them); even so, cruising around the capital city of Seoul in a convoy of black G90 sedans is enough to turn heads as we head to the brand’s flagship experience centre.

This nondescript building south of the city’s core might not look like much at a passing glance, with its rusty louvred facade free of the traditional adornments that might be found on the side of a dealership – and that’s exactly what this space is. But for a brand where nothing is done without intention, it should come as no surprise that even the minimalist look of the building’s exterior was inspired by the overlapping layers of hanbok, or traditional Korean clothing.

The almost austere aesthetic continues inside, with just a single vehicle on display on the main floor. However, each floor above feels more traditional, with more vehicles on display under lighting inspired by hanji – traditional Korean window coverings – that shows off the colour and contours of each of them to perfection. (The same lighting elements are used globally, including in Genesis showrooms in Canada.)

The attention to detail here is incredible. Take the G90 Black that’s on display on the uppermost floor, for example; even its vanity plates are finished in a black-on-black motif to match the car itself – a touch that stands out precisely because it doesn’t. Incidentally, the brand’s global design head, SangYup Lee, said later that it took nearly two years to get the details right before Genesis was ready to launch the Korea-exclusive special edition.

“It has a bad-ass character,” he said of the sedan. “But when you look close, you see a lot of sophisticated touches around the vehicle.”

Inside, the black hues for the speaker covers, switchgear, and woodgrain trim were very deliberately selected to pair properly with the quilted upholstery, while outside, massive black chrome wheels were chosen instead of simply painting them the same shade as the body panels. Taken together, it has the appearance of a curated car instead of one that was given an aftermarket treatment.

Distinctly Korean Design

It’s that attention to detail that has buoyed the brand through its first nine years, although some might argue it wasn’t until the involvement of Lee – along with his boss, the brand’s chief creative officer, Luc Donckerwolke – that the Genesis lineup started to stand apart stylistically. This is a brand that identifies with design almost disproportionately compared to its rivals.

Design means brand, brand means design – it’s a refrain echoed by executives over and again. According to Lee, it’s another way the company’s heritage comes into play.

“We also talk about Genesis being distinctly Korean, which is what we can do – nobody else is,” he said with a coy smile. “How can we reflect that character into the vehicle – this is how we created the two-line architecture.”

The look has made its way across the entire lineup in recent years, with the split lighting signature providing a character of duality, according to Lee. It’s the balance of athleticism and elegance that’s soon to take on more significance with the launch of the brand’s highly anticipated Magma performance program.

Elsewhere, Lee and the design team are turning to Korean architecture for inspiration. For historic hanok, the positioning of a house itself within its surroundings has long been crucial. It’s a chance to leverage natural beauty and let the outside in – a philosophy that found its way into one of Genesis’s latest concept vehicles.

From Concept to Reality

Yes, concept vehicles are often fanciful – and fantastical – exercises in imagination. But Lee said its short history has thus far proven that Genesis doesn’t shy away from making its creations a reality.

“We don’t do concept cars for the sake of concept cars,” he said. “Our concept cars always have very strong production intention.”

Enter the Neolune concept. Introduced ahead of the 2024 New York auto show – alongside the Magma sub-brand – the imaginative SUV hides some unrealistic features underneath its sculpted sheet metal, like swivelling front seats and a rather distracting looking infotainment display. However, even the concept’s coach doors are another distillation of Korean design.

“Beauty of white space is a very Korean philosophy,” Lee said, noting the “ultimate reductive design” of the concept.

Final Thoughts

Those are just some of the ways Genesis is honouring its heritage as a uniquely Korean luxury brand while leveraging its youth and a willingness to try different approaches. Lee looks back on his days at Bentley, where the brand’s bible was filled with the dos and don’ts informed entirely by history.

“At Genesis, we have the same bible, but with blank pages,” he said.

Even so, he said the brand’s youth has its advantages and disadvantages. Lee cited customer acceptance as a particularly challenging issue in the premium space. But then the freedom for designers to lead the way in establishing not just the brand’s look but its very identity is motivation to keep pushing the boundaries.

“Nothing is easy,” he said. “But as a designer it (offers) a great opportunity, because not only are you designing beautiful cars but also you’re building the brand.”