Reporting and analysis on retail, e-commerce, and consumer trends in Korea, updated continuously by our newsroom.
Hyundai Department Store is introducing last-minute measures to comply with the new 52-hour workweek, which goes into effect next week. Korea’s third-largest department store chain is reducing the working hours of its sales staff by one hour, the company said…
Lotte Duty Free said Sunday that it has opened its second store in Vietnam at Nha Trang Cam Ranh International Airport as it strives to expand its presence in the Asian market and better serve Chinese and Russian visitors. The company, a major player in the…
A situations vacant post has revealed French beauty brand Sephora’s plans to launch in Korea next year. The job posting for a human resources manager with Sephora Korea included an announcement that the personal and beauty care store chain will be opening an…
The brand value of Korean Air fell sharply in the second quarter over a series of allegations involving the family that owns it, an appraisal website showed Sunday. The flag carrier’s brand value ranked 36th in the April-June period, down from 11th a quarter…
Korean discount store chain Homeplus has opened a bulk products and grocery store hybrid called Homeplus Special in Daegu. The new concept store is housed in the original Homeplus outlet that opened 20 years ago, now converted to operate the new…
L’Escape, Shinsegae’s new boutique hotel, aims to combine the ambience of 19th-century Paris with intriguing restaurants and bars from Korean and foreign trendsetters. Located in central Seoul, behind the main Shinsegae Department Store branch, L’Escape…
Starbucks Korea says it will expand its premium Reserve store network to meet the growing demand for specialty coffee among local consumers. The company will open two Reserve stores in Seoul and a third in Pangyo, just south of the capital, this week. They…
K-pop merchandise is selling well on e-commerce platform 11st’s global website, boosted by fans from the greater China region, which account for 43 percent of the products’ sales. According to figures for the first five months of the year, 43.2 percent of…
Korea’s top mobile messenger Kakaotalk resumed normal services after experiencing disruptions around 5 p.m., its operator Kakao said Monday. Kakao said the messenger suffered problems for around an hour before being normalized at 5:48 p.m. It claimed there…
Shinsegae Duty Free won two licenses to operate at Incheon International Airport’s Terminal 1 on Friday, beating out Shilla Duty Free in the competitive battle for lucrative slots at one of the world’s most trafficked airports. The Korea Customs Service said…
Cosmax’s manufacturing facilities in Thailand recently started up, the company said Monday, with the goal of tapping into Asean’s largest beauty market. An original design manufacturer for big-name beauty brands worldwide, the company announced that the…
Korea’s top portal operator Naver said Monday it will invest 150 billion won in its online comic platform to better penetrate into overseas markets. Naver said it will make the investment through a paid-in capital increase program and acquire 300,000…
The board of Woori Bank approved a plan to convert the bank into a holding company, pushing up its shares on Wednesday. An announcement released late Tuesday said the country’s fourth largest bank would overhaul its structure to become an integrated financial…
South Korean mobile carrier SK Telecom has announced a US$449 million investment into a subsidiary’s e-commerce platform, 11Street Shopping Mall. In a decision yet to be approved by shareholders, SK will use the investment, sourced from the H&Q Korea private…
In a Red Bull video on the company’s YouTube channel, you don’t often see the drink itself. In a video entitled “Shaun White’s Private Pipe – Red Bull Project X,” American snowboarder Shaun White is transported to a half-pipe on snowy mountain via a…
K-Bank, the country’s first Internet-only bank, is struggling to raise the capital it needs to expand as profits remain elusive amid increasing costs, sources directly involved with the issue said. “K-Bank recently asked local private equity funds (PEFs) to…
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