Commodification of Youth K-Pop Culture in Russia: Interactions Between Entrepreneurs and Consumers

Youth fan communities, entering the commercial environment, are faced with new forms of consumption, new challenges and new discoveries. This work is a study of the market of goods, products and services associated with fans of Korean popular music in the Russian market. The main goal of the work is to understand how the relationship between consumers and producers of the Korean popular music market in Russia is arranged in the context of the commodification of this youth culture. For the study, 20 interviews were collected - 10 interviews with consumers who identify themselves as fans of Korean popular music and who are actively involved in consumption of fan products, and 10 with entrepreneurs who are engaged in business associated with this area on the territory of the Russian Federation. Based on the data collected in 2022 and 2023, this paper explores the features of the market, as well as the organization of relationships between consumers and entrepreneurs. The results showed that the market is largely based on distrust, distance, the risk of deception, and a high level of criticism. Entrepreneurs take a position of openness, adaptability, trying to adapt to a rapidly changing environment. Three strategies for goal-setting doing business in this area were also identified. Consumers, on the other hand, are market regulators who are wary of consumption, segmented into sub-communities according to the type of consumption, and create associations for the exchange of experience. Three strategies for consumer consumption in market conditions have been identified. There are two key parameters for consumers to evaluate entrepreneurs and their role: proximity to or distance from the community and the product/service provided.