Seoul’s Shoe Repair Booths and Street Kiosks Win iF Design Award After First Redesign in 16 Years
- The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s “Seoul Standard Design for Sidewalk Commercial Facilities,” developed last year, has received international recognition for its design excellence. - The new design improves both the urban streetscape and pedestrian convenience. Seoul replaced 70 facilities by February and plans to install around 60 additional facilities by the end of the year. - The city will continue collecting feedback from operators and conducting additional demand surveys, while replacing facilities in phases according to its annual plan. - Seoul said, “This award recognizes the competitiveness of K-public design. We will continue creating pedestrian environments that enhance both walking safety and the appeal of the city.” |
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has fully redesigned sidewalk commercial facilities, including shoe repair booths and street kiosks, for the first time in 16 years. Since late last year, the city has been gradually applying the new “Seoul Standard Design,” replacing 70 facilities to date, and has now gained international recognition for its design competitiveness.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that its Seoul Standard Design for Sidewalk Commercial Facilities has won the main award in the Product & Public Design category at the iF DESIGN AWARD 2026 in Germany, one of the world’s three major design awards.
Along with the IDEA Design Awards in the United States and Germany’s Red Dot Design Award, the iF DESIGN AWARD is considered one of the world’s top three design awards. The winning design is known to have received strong recognition for resolving the structural and functional issues of existing facilities while also enhancing operators’ rights and improving the urban streetscape.
▲ Shoe Repair Booth with Seoul Standard Design Applied
▲ Street Kiosk with Seoul Standard Design Applied
The city newly developed the Seoul Standard Design last year, as the sidewalk commercial facilities replaced under the Design Seoul 1.0 project in 2009 had become outdated in color and form after more than a decade, undermining the visual consistency and aesthetics of the streetscape. Some facilities were also encroaching on pedestrian space. As of February this year, replacements had been completed for 39 shoe repair booths and 31 street kiosks.
Sidewalk commercial facilities installed on sidewalks according to city standards include street kiosks, which sell newspapers, magazines and beverages or provide transportation card charging and sales services, and shoe repair booths, which provide shoe repair services.
Design Seoul 1.0 was a project aimed at transforming Seoul into a SOFT CITY centered on culture and design. It improved the design of street facilities such as street kiosks, sidewalk blocks, trash bins, subway canopies and bus shelters, and served as a starting point for Seoul’s rise as a globally recognized design city.
The Seoul Standard Design presents an integrated design guideline covering the facilities’ size, materials, colors and signage, with a focus on ensuring harmony with the urban streetscape. By minimizing unnecessary attachments and unifying the exterior design, it helps create a more organized street image while also improving pedestrian visibility and the overall walking environment.
To reflect actual operating conditions during the design development process, the city installed full-scale prototypes of a street kiosk and a shoe repair booth in the Mugyo-dong area of Jung-gu, Seoul, in February last year. The final design was confirmed after collecting feedback from operators and other stakeholders.
The city plans to complete the replacement and new installation of around 130 sidewalk commercial facilities by the end of this year, including those already replaced. It will also conduct an additional demand survey among operators and continue replacing facilities in phases according to its annual plan.
Han Byeong-yong, Head of Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Disaster and Safety Office, said, “This iF Design Award once again demonstrates the global recognition of Korea’s public design competitiveness. Beyond simply replacing facilities, we will continue to create pedestrian environments that further enhance pedestrian safety, as well as the appeal and dignity of the city.”
