Seoul Design Week 2026 opened Wednesday, turning Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) and neighborhoods across the city into a showcase for design innovation, from life-saving devices to lifestyle products and student-industry collaborations. DDP will serve as the hub for the 12-day program linking 150 design destinations across five districts of the capital through exhibitions, a fair, a conference and neighborhood walks. The event runs through Oct. 25 under the theme “The Design Recipe,” hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Design Foundation. “This year’s Seoul Design Week will showcase the potential of Seoul’s brands and K-design to expand globally,” said Cha Kang-hee, CEO of the Seoul Design Foundation. The DDP Design Fair, the festival’s flagship program, features 79 lifestyle brands and a special pavilion of 20 young designers across four distinctively themed spaces: the Market of the Warm Gourmet, the Market of the Cheerful Companion, the Market of the Quiet Dreamer and the Market of the Attentive Homemaker. Rather than following a fixed category path,