Retailing

The lack of mobility due to COVID-19 restrictions negatively impacted sales in the vending channel in 2020. While the threat of the pandemic remained relevant in South Korea in 2021, a gradual relaxing of restrictions meant that many educational…

Supermarkets have been losing sales to other grocery retailers in recent years, with convenience stores evolving into “mini supermarkets”, with the increasing introduction of grocery products, and hypermarkets winning over supermarket shoppers by…

Although sales at small local grocers increased in 2022, this is likely to be a one-off, with this channel having lost a lot of sales over the review period and also expected to be in decline over the forecast period. In addition, in spite of rising…

In 2022, the full lifting of social-distancing measures and the outdoor mask mandate helped both retail e-commerce and retail offline post healthy sales growth rates in this year. Among retail offline channels, department stores was one of the most…

COVID-19 restrictions helped e-commerce record dynamic growth in South Korea in 2020, followed by another strong performance in value sales terms in 2021, as the lingering impact of COVID-19 continued to influence consumers’ shopping patterns.…

Offline sales growth remains sluggish at hypermarkets, with this store type struggling due to a consumer shift to online shopping and the government’s operating restrictions. The disappointing sales performances in recent years have therefore been…

Home seclusion, which was widespread during 2020 and also continued to be seen in 2021, helped boost sales at home products specialists in both years, with demand for many products offered by such retailers higher than usual. Homewares and home…

Pharmacies, the biggest channel in health and beauty specialists, recorded strong sales growth in 2022, largely driven by increasing sales of COVID-19 test kits and cold/cough medicines due to the sharp surge in Omicron case numbers in the first half…

Department stores recorded strong growth in 2022, especially driven by apparel, footwear and beauty products, with social-distancing measures and outdoor mask mandates fully lifted and consumers’ frequency of outdoor activities increasing. Affluent…

E-Mart established the discounters channel in 2016 with the launch of its No Name banner. It was looking for further growth opportunities as the growth of hypermarkets, the company’s core business, had gradually plateaued. Since the launch of its No…

In South Korea, direct selling players experienced a challenging year in 2020 when the pandemic first hit the country, with sales well down on a year earlier. In spite of seeing a partial recovery from 2020’s declines, the channel failed to fully…

Convenience retailer sales continued to increase in 2022, helped by the South Korean government’s lifting of all COVID-19-related social-distancing rules in April. New convenience retail outlets continue to open, as new constructions or housing and…

With consumers having become very accustomed to using online shopping for appliances and electronics during the pandemic, it is unlikely that there will be a wholesale shift back from online to offline sales in the post-pandemic period. E-commerce…

Demand for apparel and footwear in South Korea slumped in 2020 when the pandemic first arrived in the country, with this channel losing around a third of its sales compared with a year earlier. However, it should be noted that sales had already been…

This report examines e-commerce usage and revenue share from e-commerce in different industries and countries. The e-commerce index helps to better understand which industries are leading and identify key success factors. The briefing also analysis…

In 2021, warehouse clubs maintained strong double-digit current value growth in contrast to many other store-based retailers that struggled to recover from the losses caused by reduced footfall since early 2020. Due to the continued social distancing…

While many other retail channels were negatively hit by COVID-19, variety stores in South Korea performed relatively well despite the temporary decline of footfall when the country faced several major waves of the virus. Aside from the core value…

As the shift towards e-commerce accelerates in South Korea, store-based retailers are reconsidering the role of offline stores, seeking to revamp the customer’s shopping experience. Traditional grocery retailers, often failing to differentiate from…

In South Korea, consumers have formed a strong habit of shopping online rather than visiting physical stores since 2020. Having had a high mobile penetration of total e-commerce prior to the pandemic, in 2021, South Korea maintained its position as…

In 2021, homeshopping retained a fairly stable performance, albeit recording low value sales declines, as local consumers continued to spend greater time at home than usual, leading to increased screen time on digital devices, including televisions.…