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Ably Applies for Trademarks in ‘Performance, Dining, and Travel’… Evolving into an Everyday Lifestyle Platform?

[비즈한국] The women's fashion app Ably is expanding its footprint from a fashion-centric commerce platform to encompassing all aspects of daily life. Following the pilot launch of a beauty shop reservation service this June, the company has recently begun securing trademarks related to performance ticketing and travel reservations, signaling a full-scale category expansion. This move is interpreted as an effort to broaden user touchpoints by evolving into a taste-based, lifestyle-integrated platform.

‘Ticket & Accommodation Reservations’: Ably’s Blueprint for Evolving into a Lifestyle Platform

It has been confirmed that Ably Corporation, the operator of Ably, filed a trademark for “ABLY Place” with the Korean Intellectual Property Office on the 2nd. The designated goods include a wide range of transportation, travel, culture, performance, and food/beverage/accommodation services, such as performance planning, live performance ticket booking, restaurant reservations, lodging reservations, aircraft rental/booking/provision, and travel agency services.

The application is currently in the review stage to determine registration. This trademark filing serves as foundational work for future expansion. The purpose is to widen the scope of brand protection related to service categories like travel, performances, and lodging, and to secure an operational basis for new business development. An Ably representative explained, “We are reviewing new businesses from various angles to create a positive seller ecosystem, and we have filed for these trademarks broadly as a preemptive measure to consider future business scalability.”

Ably Place was beta-launched in June of this year, starting with a beauty shop reservation service. It currently operates as a location-based lifestyle and commercial connection service, allowing local businesses such as nail salons, bakeries, and workshops to register, thereby supporting their reservation management, promotion, and product sales.

In the case of the beauty shop reservation service, users can check information on registered nail and waxing shops within the Ably app and request reservations through in-app inquiries or quote exchanges. While it is still in the early stages—with in-app payments only supported for select businesses like bakeries—it is viewed as a service launched with scalability in mind.

Finding the ‘Future’ of Vertical Apps in Connecting Daily Life

As major vertical platforms (specialized in specific fields) seek to overcome the growth limitations of commerce by expanding into all aspects of daily life, Ably is also attempting to evolve into a platform that connects daily consumption beyond just fashion.

Ably, whose primary customer base consists of women in their teens and twenties, has competed in the fashion platform market with relatively low-priced clothing. However, it faces criticism for having insufficient internal stability despite its external growth. While Ably maintains the No. 1 spot in Monthly Active Users (MAU) among formidable rivals like Musinsa, and achieved a record-high revenue of 334.3 billion KRW last year, becoming the first women’s fashion platform to surpass 2 trillion KRW in annual gross merchandise value (GMV), it faces the challenge of breaking free from its deficit structure—having recorded an operating loss of 15.4 billion KRW one year after a 3.2 billion KRW profit in 2023—and securing long-term competitiveness.

While solidifying its position as the undisputed No. 1 women’s fashion app, Ably is driving new business expansion alongside the men’s fashion app “4910” and the Japanese local service “Amood.” Previously, Ably became the first domestic fashion platform to introduce content sectors like webtoons and web novels, expanding into entertainment and digital content beyond fashion. Similarly, Musinsa has recently filed for various trademarks such as “Musinsa Standard Flower” (retail), “Musinsa Standard Residence” (tourist accommodation/resort business), and “Musinsa Sauna” (sauna services), leaving possibilities open for marketing and business use.

The background of Ably introducing the Ably Place service is aligned with this business context. A reservation service that connects local shops to customers is considered an area that can increase the time users spend on the platform and create new revenue sources, such as advertising and brokerage fees. Attention is focused on whether adding services like travel and performance booking will have a positive impact on platform competitiveness and market expansion in the future.

An Ably representative stated, “As a taste-based commerce platform, Ably plans to continue providing differentiated services with customer satisfaction as our top priority.”