Life often does not go as planned; its serpentine roads are full of ups and downs. But happiness is in the eye of the beholder, and it is the niche surprises in the most unexpected corners that make the happiness of Hyun-Soo Kim, the proprietor of the leather fashion brand Adam’s Peach. Once a singer, Kim had encountered the proverbial fork in the road and took the road less traveled: becoming a fashion entrepreneur. He reflects upon the choice and smiles at the happy surprises it brought.
Kim, notably, drives a Genesis GV80. For this father of two and the CEO of a successful fashion brand, what did that choice entail? In what ways has the GV80 added color to his life? This is the story of one ambitious man and a special car that reflected his life’s wishes.
Some eighteen years ago, I debuted as a pro singer. I was 22, and I had just formed a group called F-iv (pronounced five) with some close musician friends of mine. My initial dream was in composing―the group’s first album was entirely written by me, and it sold decently. The second album was a co-work with renowned producers, but that one didn’t go too well. I then became a solo composer, which also hit me with the hard reality of stiff competition in the field. I was beginning to lose my focus on life.
That’s when I met premium leather products. I was captivated by them. I wondered―out of the blue―if I could make these things. A ridiculous thought, I know, but I am a spontaneous guy, and I tried my hands first at making 100 leather money clips. Surprisingly, they sold out in a week, and when I made 300 more, they also sold out in a month. This fueled my self-esteem that had cratered from all the years of singing and composing. Perhaps this was my new way.
I was spellbound at that point, and nothing could stop me from entering the fashion industry. Fast forward 14 years―now, my life has been turned around. I started out building up a fashion brand called Mannequin, and that gig went for ten years. Then four years ago, I started my own brand Adam’s Peach, which focuses on premium luxury products for males. Our slogan is this: Kicking out the 'ajussi' style in the Korean fashion industry (ajussi, which means middle-aged man in Korean, implies a lack of―and apathy to―fashion sense).
The luxury market tends to value form over function, and idiosyncrasies over conformity. But recently, even luxury brands are closely monitoring and reacting swiftly to global fashion trends. Tradition is important, but so is innovation. This philosophy is in line with one of the reasons why I fell for the Genesis line. Most luxury cars feel, in a way, traditional and classic, intended for the aged consumer segment; the Genesis models, though, seemed to offer something for the young drivers too.
I mean, look at its design. Good design is supposed to simultaneously give an instant impact and sustained appeal; the short-term memory of the first impression and the long-term memory of the brand image are both important here. In that vein, the GV80 is the best domestic car I have ever seen. It’s achieved this fine balance of futurism that doesn’t go crazy in excess.
Personally, though, I really love the GV80’s interior. The exterior shows off to other people, but the interior is what you experience. That used to be the reason why I chose imported cars, particularly the ones that were advertised as hand-crafted. The quality of the material and the finish were big selling points for them.
But I look at the GV80, and I look at the leather used in the interior―and it’s a beauty. Leather as a material is generally prone to damage, so the highest quality leather can only be produced by being incredibly selective. You have to pick the animals in a well-controlled environment, work with only the select parts of their hides, and process them through the most sophisticated dyeing and coating methods. That’s clearly what happened in the leather used on the GV80. The finish is great, too. The sewing is uniform and the piping is narrow. You only saw this kind of leather in cars with extreme sticker prices, like a few hundred thousand dollars.
The leather used on car seats or on fashion items are in daily use, so durability becomes important. You can’t just fix it up after it goes bad, as you would with mechanical parts. And the artisans who can work on premium leather goods are always in short supply, so it’s just a good idea to make as durable a good as possible from the get-go. This is why many premium fashion brands around the world uniformly emphasize craftsmanship.
Leather craftsmanship is about being absolutely meticulous with every aspect of the production, from material selection and processing to dyeing, coating, and sewing. And you know what? The GV80 meets my high standards. It’s evidently clear that the manufacturer spared no efforts in creating a truly premium vehicle.
For such a magnificently crafted vehicle, the GV80 is practical―‘form follows function,’ if you will. I make frequent trips shopping for leather rolls, and each time I’m surprised by just how much the trunk can hold. The seats on the third row―which is useful when the whole family, from the grandparents to kids, makes the trip―can be easily folded back. Press a button in the trunk, and voila, the seats are folded. When an even larger load is necessary, I sometimes fold the second-row seats as well, also with a mere touch of a button.
The large trunk makes the GV80 a great family car as well. When the family goes out for a stroll, I sometimes load the kids’ bikes there; when we go on extended trips, the trunk is home to an innumerable list of children’s goods. If you have young kids, you must know the list goes on and on. Large storage space comes in handy during golf or outdoor treks, too. Basically, any event that accompanies multiple people in leisurely activity makes the GV80 an excellent option.
Here are the kids―my curious and mischievous treasures. They’re excited to be on daddy’s flashy new car, and I won’t blame them, because I was like that on my first ride here. The design is captivating, the interior material quality is excellent, and the infotainment system is full of surprises. So many features I didn’t know even existed. Looking through some of them, it looked like they will be extremely useful. If I got used to them, it felt I could substantially reduce the physical burden of driving.
If I had to name a few of those functions, well, the handwriting recognition on the integrated controller was impressive. I scribbled on it haphazardly, and it somehow captured my preferred destination’s address and phone number and put them on the navigation. Voice recognition was likewise great. It really looked like many convenient features were organized well so that they could be used intuitively. The most impressive feature was the Genesis Digital Key. Putting the key in your smartphone and remotely giving driving privileges to other people? Are you kidding me? I often leave my keys in the office when I am hurrying for an outside meeting, and the digital key saves lives in those situations.
Initially, I was a bit worried about driving a massive 7-seater SUV; I had driven smaller sedans before, but nothing this large. But it turned out I didn’t need to worry. The car just smoothly captured my every wish and precisely followed my intentions. I’ve driven many cars in my life, but the GV80 takes the cake in optimizing comfort and driveability while offering the versatility of a family car and a “sports utility” vehicle.
Pictures. Bum-Suk Kim, Jung-Ho Kim
Model. Hyun-Soo Kim
