EXO's Kai Named LACOSTE Korea Brand Ambassador

LACOSTE Korea has named EXO vocalist and solo artist Kai as its newest brand ambassador, the brand confirmed on February 27, 2026. The appointment formalizes a relationship that had been building through Kai’s appearance at the brand’s Fall/Winter 2025 Paris fashion show and his role as campaign model for the FW25 season.

The brand positioned the partnership around character alignment rather than star power alone. “His tenacity and focus when pursuing a goal, and his ability to show strength and restraint on stage, closely resembles the image of the crocodile, the symbol of the brand,” LACOSTE said in its announcement. The house also drew a direct line to its founding mythology: tennis champion Rene Lacoste’s philosophy of persistence, competitive drive, and an obsession with style maps cleanly onto how Kai has built his career, whether as EXO’s lead dancer and one of K-pop’s most technically demanding performers, or as a solo artist expanding into fashion, acting, and brand partnerships on his own terms.

Kai’s history with LACOSTE predates the official announcement. He attended the label’s fashion show in Paris in the second half of 2025 before appearing in the FW25 season campaign, where the brand noted he absorbed LACOSTE’s “classic yet modern French sport style” and delivered a restrained elegance that built “positive synergy” with the house. That initial collaboration made the ambassador appointment the natural next step.

Kai addressed the escalation directly. “LACOSTE is a brand I have always found impressive, having started from sport and expanded into style and culture,” he said. “Having already experienced the brand’s energy and direction through the fashion show and campaign, I am happy to now build a deeper story as ambassador.”

The French sportswear house, founded in 1933 by tennis champion Rene Lacoste under the philosophy that “playing and winning are not enough without style,” operates in Korea through Dongil LACOSTE. The brand’s positioning has always leaned into the intersection of athletic achievement and sartorial precision, a combination that suits Kai’s public identity well. His fashion credentials are established: he has worked with Gucci, has appeared at Paris Fashion Week, and carries the kind of effortless visual authority that international sportswear brands increasingly seek from Korean talent.

Kai will front domestic campaigns and brand activities throughout the year as the ambassador relationship takes shape. Given the timing, a campaign launch is expected in the near term.