28 October 2025
The Weekly
South Korea

Lotte Department Store will host the largest webtoon event in the country, the '2025 World Webtoon Festival,' in Jamsil, Songpa-gu, Seoul. Over 200 webtoon IPs (Intellectual Properties) will participate, and 11 pop-up stores are scheduled to open. Organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Agency, the event is the largest webtoon-related gathering in the country. The event will feature participation from over 200 webtoons and is structured to allow visitors to experience Korean webtoons offline. From the 16th to the 26th, 11 pop-up stores will operate across five floors of Lotte World Mall, from basement level 1 to level 4, selling over 1,200 types of webtoon-themed merchandise. Compared to last year’s exhibition-focused format, this year has expanded merchandise planning. Over 100 types of merchandise from *Maru is a Puppy* and brand collaboration products with Uniqlo, SPAO, and Vivienne will be sold. Additionally, around 90 first-ever revealed products from *Lookism* will be showcased. At the *Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint* pop-up store, visitors can sample specially curated pastries and beverages. Merchandise from the webtoon *How to Hide the Emperor’s Child* will also be unveiled. Events include live drawing shows by webtoon artists, live dubbing shows by popular voice actor Nam Do-hyeok, and a signing event with artist Gwangjin.