Stay-at-home vacation trend boosts retailers
/ Korea Times file
More Koreans are spending their vacations at home rather than traveling overseas, research shows _ and retailers are the winners.
In a recent survey by market research company Macromillembrain, 51.7 percent of 1,000 respondents aged 19-59 said it was not necessary to go on a trip for summer vacation.
Sales at retailers reflect this trend.
According to Lotte Mart, sales of construction toys and video and PC games during the summer vacation season (July 1-Aug. 9) have risen from the same period a year earlier.
Sales of beads craft products jumped 169.7 percent and construction toys 180.6 percent.
Sales of the Playstation hardware and Playstation games surged 80.8 percent and 198.6 percent, respectively.
Another survey by online retailer Gmarket from July 27-Aug. 6 also showed 57 percent of 983 respondents "do not want to do anything" for the summer vacation.
Sales of plastic models and model building products were up 60 percent and building blocks 122 percent.