Reporting and analysis on retail, e-commerce, and consumer trends in Korea, updated continuously by our newsroom.
Seoul soft drink vending machines have been banned, causing outrage amongst consumers. The Seoul Metropolitan Government has decided to ban the sales of soft drinks at vending machines in public spaces and subway stations. But the decision has been derided by…
The world’s largest fondue restaurant chain is looking to expand throughout Asia after early success in Indonesia. Franchisees are now actively being sought for The Melting Pot in Hong Kong, Macau, China, Japan, South Korea and India. The Tampa, Florida-based…
South Korean cosmetics brand Missha has opened a new store in Barcelona, Spain. The new Missha Barcelona store marks the Able C&C-owned brand’s second European market, after it opened a store in Ingolstadt in Germany in February. Missha is the first Korean…
What’s the next new retail category in electronics? Wearable power supplies, judging by product innovations just revealed in Korea. Samsung SDI Co and LG Chem Co, South Korea’s two major battery makers, are expanding their product portfolios into flexible…
Lotte Mart Vietnam plans to open 50 new supermarkets by 2020. The South Korean company’s Vietnam subsidiary operates just 11 supermarkets currently. Besides opening its own hypermarkets, the company has taken a strategic investment in local grocery retailers…
South Korea’s Shinsegae Group is to buy the Korean network of 105 Smoothie King stores and launch the brand into Vietnam. Smoothie King Vietnam will initially be focused on the Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi markets. Based in the southern US city of New Orleans,…
Estee Lauder has acquired a stake in Korean skincare products maker Have & Be Co. to grow in South Korea’s nearly $600 million online beauty products market. Skincare and fragrance maker Estee Lauder Cos. is making a concerted move to acquire market share in…
Estée Lauder Companies has tied up a deal to buy an interest in Have & Be Co, the South Korean company behind skincare brands Dr. Jart+ and men’s-focused Do The Right Thing for an undisclosed amount. The deal is expected to close in December. Dr. Jart+ is a…
Retail giant Shinsegae and industrial behemoth Doosan Group on Monday locked horns over the special license to run three urban duty-free stores in Seoul. With the urban duty-free stores regarded as a lucrative business for the sluggish retail industry, the…
South Korea is trying to stem a drop in retail spending by replicating an American shopping tradition — Black Friday. More than 34,000 stores, including three-quarters of the country’s department stores, slashed prices by as much as 80 percent in the Korean…
Japanese and South Korean retailers are smiling… but these scenes are enough to make a Hong Kong retailer weep: Watch how Chinese shop over Golden Week… in Tokyo, Seoul or Boston… Not in Hong Kong, their traditional destination. Chinese tourists, famous for…
The newly refurbished Aeon Tsuen Wan store has made the most of its Japanese parent’s design and range influence as it aims to capture more of the suburb’s rising affluence. Aeon Stores invested $30 million renovating the store which formally reopened last…
A 465 sqm pop up store promoting Macallan single malt whisky is touring major Asian cities. Designed by agency Fitch, the unique pop up is by day a shopping and exhibition area, open to any walk-in customers. In the evening, the space is transformed into a…
US sportswear brand Columbia says it will expand its retail network in South Korea, part of a strategy to become one of the top three retailers in its category there by 2020. Columbia Korea will expand its existing 250-strong retail network and broaden its…
Burberry is the first British luxury brand to launch on Korea’s largest social platform, Kakao. Burberry and Kakao have formed a global partnership, which was inaugurated with the showcase of Burberry’s Womenswear Spring/Summer 2016 show last month. Burberry…
Blooming Sweet, the online shopping mall specialising in DIY nail art materials is rapidly gaining popularity in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the US. CEO Kim Sun-Hee has been a famous nail artist in Korea for over 10 years, and launched Blooming Sweet in…
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