Olive Young magnet for foreign shoppers
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Olive Young’s flagship store in Myeong-dong / Courtesy of CJ OliveNetworks
By Lee Hyo-sik
Olive Young has become a must-visit place for foreign visitors looking to buy a wide range of the latest health and beauty products at affordable prices, according to Korea’s largest lifestyle store chain Thursday.
In particular, its flagship shop in Myeong-dong, a major shopping district for foreign tourists, attracts more than 10,000 Korean and non-Korean shoppers daily, emerging as the “K-beauty hub.”
The two-story store deals with a variety of lifestyle products, ranging from cosmetics to health foods and fashion accessories.
“Our Myeong-dong store is a one-stop lifestyle platform,” store manager Kang Byung-ho said. “In addition to recent interior renovations, the shop has gained immense popularity among young Chinese and other foreign tourists because of its timely introduction of the latest beauty, health and fashion items.”
“As soon as they step into the store, they can easily sense the up-to-date lifestyle trends that excite young Koreans. The Myeong-dong shop acts as a test bed by launching the latest products ahead of our competitors. This is one of the reasons why both Korean and non-Korean shoppers come to us,” Kang said.
The store has been organizing diverse sales and marketing events to provide new shopping experiences.
In March, it set up a 4D racing experience zone that enables buyers of Olive Young’s makeup brand, Wakemake, to play a racing game. The event, which had never been carried out by any beauty shop in Korea before, attracted more than 5,000 participants.
“Our Myeong-dong store has tried to become a new shopping platform for those longing for a healthy and beautiful lifestyle,” said an official at CJ OliveNetworks, which operates Olive Young. “We will continue to make every effort to provide our customers with new shopping experiences every time they visit us.”
The company operates more than 800 Olive Young stores across the country. In 2016, it earned 1.56 trillion won ($1.38 billion) in sales, up 36 percent from the previous year, with its operating profit jumping 16 percent to 93.4 billion won.