더웨깅블루

At The Wagging Blue, we believe exceptional pet products come from partnering with skilled, quality-driven innovators like Youngjin Textile. With over 30 years of experience, Youngjin Textile—led by CEO Kwon Oh-hyun and COO Kwon Oh-sun—combines deep craftsmanship with a forward-looking approach. Together, we embraced the complexities of jacquard weaving to bring unique designs to life, overcoming challenges with persistence. Their commitment to quality and product variety perfectly matches our mission to create durable, meaningful pet accessories. We’re excited to grow the pet market and delight pet lovers worldwide through this partnership.

At The Wagging Blue, we believe exceptional pet products come from partnering with skilled, quality-driven innovators like Youngjin Textile. With over 30 years of experience, Youngjin Textile—led by CEO Kwon Oh-hyun and COO Kwon Oh-sun—combines deep craftsmanship with a forward-looking approach.

Together, we embraced the complexities of jacquard weaving to bring unique designs to life, overcoming challenges with persistence. Their commitment to quality and product variety perfectly matches our mission to create durable, meaningful pet accessories. We’re excited to grow the pet market and delight pet lovers worldwide through this partnership.

The birth of The Wagging Blue’s beautiful webbing. At its heart is Youngjin Textile, a Korean company with a long history in webbing craftsmanship.

Please briefly introduce yourself and your company.

Hello, my name is Kwon Young-chul, and I am the CEO of Youngjin Textile. Our company opened in Majang-dong in 1988, and we have been in operation for just over 30 years. I started the business somewhat by chance, but over time, we have grown into one of the leading names in the industry.

How did you start the business?

In the beginning, I had the mindset that I could make it work as long as I tried, so I simply started with what I had learned by observing others. I picked up skills one by one from technicians who visited our factory, mastered them, and eventually passed them down directly to our current employees.

Please introduce yourself too.

Hello, my name is Kwon Oh-sun from Youngjin Textile Co., Ltd.

I am the son of the CEO and currently oversee the company’s overall operations.

What was your first impression when The Wagging Blue visited and showed you their design?

When I first saw the design, I immediately thought it would have to be produced using sublimation printing rather than jacquard weaving.

Although we had made jacquard webbing for pet products before, this design was far more complex and intricate—something I believed could only be achieved through sublimation.

However, The Wagging Blue was strongly determined to create it in jacquard, so we decided to give it a try. We made a sample, and it turned out beautifully.

I think we went through more than four sample trials because of the complexity of the design, but in the end, it worked out surprisingly well.

Earlier, you mentioned that the webbing used in The Wagging Blue’s leash was woven using the jacquard method. Could you briefly explain what jacquard weaving is?

Jacquard weaving is often compared with sublimation printing. In sublimation, the surface of the webbing is smooth, which can cause it to slip when a dog pulls. The edges can also become sharp, posing a risk of cuts, and over time, the printed pattern may wear off.

In contrast, jacquard weaving offers a comfortable grip and the right amount of friction, making it less likely to slip from the hand. It is also far more durable, allows for easy adjustment to the desired thickness, and from a design perspective, produces webbing that is unique and of much higher quality.

Although jacquard weaving has many advantages, you mentioned that this particular design posed some difficulties. Was there a memorable moment during the production of The Wagging Blue’s webbing?

Yes, there’s one that stands out. While working on this project, the design was so challenging to reproduce that my father told me several times to just give up. But I insisted we try “just one more time,” and in the end, we succeeded.

My father has always told me since I was young never to give up easily, and I believe it was because I held on to that lesson that we were able to achieve this result.

So that spirit of never giving up is Youngjin Textile’s greatest strength, right?

Yes, that lesson has been the most important for me. When I was 20, I chose not to go to university and instead went down to the factory basement to learn the trade.

Back then, I worked shoulder to shoulder with foreign laborers, which I really disliked at such a young age. I skipped work quite a bit and came and went as I pleased, but my father was like a mountain standing behind me, supporting me. He also gave me a lot of coaching, which helped me learn a great deal.

My father often emphasized that I absolutely had to master the skills. When the factory was running 24 hours, I frequently came in at night to learn. The skills I acquired back then still help me a lot to this day.

Besides your strong spirit, are there other unique strengths of Youngjin Textile?

Our company is located in the heart of Seoul. Unlike other factories, if we produced cheap goods just to compete on price, we wouldn’t make any profit and the company would fail.

That’s why we’ve focused on maintaining high quality and developed a system for small-lot, multi-product manufacturing. As a result, we produce an extremely wide variety of products.

While most other factories produce one or two types in large quantities, we offer over 100 to 200 different varieties.

The project from The Wagging Blue is just one example among them.

I believe this diversity in production is what makes Youngjin Textile truly competitive. My father often says that by now, we can weave just about any kind of tape. I share that confidence — no matter the request, we do our best to match it as closely as possible.

Do you have any goals for Youngjin Textile moving forward?

Recently, we took a bit of a risk, but thankfully we achieved a modest dream — moving to a larger factory. However, because we took on a significant loan for this move, our primary goal right now is to repay that debt. To do so, I believe we need to steadily climb the stairs one step at a time by working hard and maintaining our current momentum.

We understand you have a strong interest in the pet product market. How do you see this market evolving in the future?

I have been thinking about the dog market continuously.

I spent a lot of time considering which products would best showcase the value of our webbing. For the past two years, I’ve been studying dog leashes.

I’ve also attended many trade shows, such as those at KINTEX. Even back then, I noticed many companies still using low-quality straps from China. This made me confident that our products have a competitive edge and room to grow in the market.

I still believe the dog market is a blue ocean — an open field of opportunity. With the continuing increase of small households, dogs will remain cherished companions to many.

Please briefly introduce yourself and your company.

Hello, my name is Kwon Young-chul, and I am the CEO of Youngjin Textile. Our company opened in Majang-dong in 1988, and we have been in operation for just over 30 years. I started the business somewhat by chance, but over time, we have grown into one of the leading names in the industry.

How did you start the business?

In the beginning, I had the mindset that I could make it work as long as I tried, so I simply started with what I had learned by observing others. I picked up skills one by one from technicians who visited our factory, mastered them, and eventually passed them down directly to our current employees.

requested. However, I realized that focusing on a narrow range of items wouldn’t be sustainable, so about four to five years after opening the factory, we shifted to producing a wide variety of products. That decision paid off, and it’s what enabled the company to grow into what it is today.

Is there a particular order that stands out in your memory?

I remember a large order we delivered to the military. It was for jacquard straps used in utility uniforms, and we supplied them for about seven to eight months.

It was a high-value order and remains the most memorable one for me. I sometimes wonder if we’ll ever get to work on something that big again.

Please introduce yourself too.

Hello, my name is Kwon Oh-sun from Youngjin Textile Co., Ltd.

I am the son of the CEO and currently oversee the company’s overall operations.

What was your first impression when The Wagging Blue visited and showed you their design?

When I first saw the design, I immediately thought it would have to be produced using sublimation printing rather than jacquard weaving.

Although we had made jacquard webbing for pet products before, this design was far more complex and intricate—something I believed could only be achieved through sublimation.

However, The Wagging Blue was strongly determined to create it in jacquard, so we decided to give it a try. We made a sample, and it turned out beautifully.

I think we went through more than four sample trials because of the complexity of the design, but in the end, it worked out surprisingly well.

Earlier, you mentioned that the webbing used in The Wagging Blue’s leash was woven using the jacquard method. Could you briefly explain what jacquard weaving is?

Jacquard weaving is often compared with sublimation printing. In sublimation, the surface of the webbing is smooth, which can cause it to slip when a dog pulls. The edges can also become sharp, posing a risk of cuts, and over time, the printed pattern may wear off.

In contrast, jacquard weaving offers a comfortable grip and the right amount of friction, making it less likely to slip from the hand. It is also far more durable, allows for easy adjustment to the desired thickness, and from a design perspective, produces webbing that is unique and of much higher quality.

Although jacquard weaving has many advantages, you mentioned that this particular design posed some difficulties. Was there a memorable moment during the production of The Wagging Blue’s webbing?

Yes, there’s one that stands out. While working on this project, the design was so challenging to reproduce that my father told me several times to just give up. But I insisted we try “just one more time,” and in the end, we succeeded.

My father has always told me since I was young never to give up easily, and I believe it was because I held on to that lesson that we were able to achieve this result.

So that spirit of never giving up is Youngjin Textile’s greatest strength, right?

Yes, that lesson has been the most important for me. When I was 20, I chose not to go to university and instead went down to the factory basement to learn the trade.

Back then, I worked shoulder to shoulder with foreign laborers, which I really disliked at such a young age. I skipped work quite a bit and came and went as I pleased, but my father was like a mountain standing behind me, supporting me. He also gave me a lot of coaching, which helped me learn a great deal.

My father often emphasized that I absolutely had to master the skills. When the factory was running 24 hours, I frequently came in at night to learn. The skills I acquired back then still help me a lot to this day.

Besides your strong spirit, are there other unique strengths of Youngjin Textile?

Our company is located in the heart of Seoul. Unlike other factories, if we produced cheap goods just to compete on price, we wouldn’t make any profit and the company would fail.

That’s why we’ve focused on maintaining high quality and developed a system for small-lot, multi-product manufacturing. As a result, we produce an extremely wide variety of products.

While most other factories produce one or two types in large quantities, we offer over 100 to 200 different varieties.

The project from The Wagging Blue is just one example among them.

I believe this diversity in production is what makes Youngjin Textile truly competitive. My father often says that by now, we can weave just about any kind of tape. I share that confidence — no matter the request, we do our best to match it as closely as possible.

Do you have any goals for Youngjin Textile moving forward?

Recently, we took a bit of a risk, but thankfully we achieved a modest dream — moving to a larger factory. However, because we took on a significant loan for this move, our primary goal right now is to repay that debt. To do so, I believe we need to steadily climb the stairs one step at a time by working hard and maintaining our current momentum.

We understand you have a strong interest in the pet product market. How do you see this market evolving in the future?

I have been thinking about the dog market continuously.

I spent a lot of time considering which products would best showcase the value of our webbing. For the past two years, I’ve been studying dog leashes.

I’ve also attended many trade shows, such as those at KINTEX. Even back then, I noticed many companies still using low-quality straps from China. This made me confident that our products have a competitive edge and room to grow in the market.

I still believe the dog market is a blue ocean — an open field of opportunity. With the continuing increase of small households, dogs will remain cherished companions to many.

We sincerely thank Mr. Kwon Oh-hyun, CEO of Youngjin Textile, and Mr. Kwon Oh-sun for kindly participating in this interview.

Atelier Interview:
Youngjin Textiles, since 1988

Atelier Interview:
Youngjin Textiles, since 1988

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