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Food delivery service Baemin seeks to become e-commerce platform

Delivery drivers pose in front of Woowa Brothers' headquarters in Seoul in this 2017 file photo. Courtesy of Woowa Brothers By Kim Jae-heunBaedal Minjok (Baemin), Korea's largest food delivery platform operated by Woowa Brothers, is seeking to become a general e-commerce platform while further boosting its online food delivery business, according to company officials Wednesday.Baemin, which had posted significant sales growth during the 3-year COVID-19 lockdown, has seen its online food deliver service grow at a slower pace since early this year when the pandemic eased, including soaring food price inflation and falling demand for online food orders.According to the Mobile Index of big data platform IGAWorks, Wednesday, the number of Baemin's monthly active users (MAUs) fell 4.2 percent year-on-year to stand at 19.87 million in January.Baemin's quick commerce service “B Mart” and open market platform “Baemin Store” are Woowa Brothers' new growth engines. The B Mart

Mar 9, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Food delivery service Baemin seeks to become e-commerce platform
Companies

LGES' in-house startup to build wind power management project on Jeju

From left, Tamra Offshore Wind Power CEO Jeong Kwang-sung, Head of Renewable Energy Department of Korea South-East Power Kang Hee-woong and AVEL CEO Kim Hyun-tae pose for a picture after signing a business agreement at Tamra Offshore Wind Power headquarters on Jeju Island, Tuesday. Courtesy of LG Energy SolutionBy Kim Jae-heunLG Energy Solution's company-in-company (CIC) AVEL has signed a business agreement with Korea South-East Power and Tamra Offshore Wind Power to jointly participate in a pilot project to improve Jeju Island's power market system, the company said Wednesday. Under the partnership, the three firms will predict renewable energy generation quantity which will be managed by linking offshore wind generators and energy storage systems (ESSs). AVEL plans to use energy aggregation technology to operate ESS and others. Korea South-East Power will share its administrative know-how related to the forecast system, while Tamra Offshore Wind Power will provide wind power operation data.“Until now, it had been difficult to accurately predict the generation quantity of offs

Mar 8, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
LGES' in-house startup to build wind power management project on Jeju
Companies

Consumers put price over reviews when ordering food online

A driver delivers food by scooter in Seoul in this 2022 file photo. YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunA 32-year-old office worker surnamed Han orders food from online delivery platforms three times a week. Restaurant reviews used to be her first consideration when placing online food orders, but now, she checks the delivery fee first.“It's crazy how much you have to pay for delivery when ordering from certain restaurants these days. I've seen some stores charge up to 7,000 won ($5.40). I will never pay that amount, even if I want to order from my favorite restaurant,” Han said. A 27-year-old barista surnamed Lee recently fixed his settings on an online food delivery platform to list restaurants with the cheapest delivery fees on top.“I am not going to order food from stores that charge a maximum delivery fee on the platform. Sometimes delivery fees are nearly half the price of the food I order. I don't understand it,” Lee said. According to the “2022-2023 Domestic and Foreign Restaurant Trend” report released by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corpora

Mar 7, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Consumers put price over reviews when ordering food online
Companies

SPC Samlip enters Thai bakery market

From left, SPC Samlip CEO Hwang Jong-hyun, SPC Group Executive Vice President Hur Hee-soo, Makro Thailand CEO Tanit Chearavanont and Makro Business Group CEO Saowaluck Thithapant pose during a memorandum of understanding signing ceremony held at a hotel in Seoul, March 2. Courtesy of SPC Group,By Kim Jae-heunSPC Samlip signed a memorandum of understanding with Siam Makro, a retail affiliate of Thailand's biggest conglomerate CP Group, to enter the Southeast Asian country's bakery market, the company said Monday. It is the company's first partnership deal with a foreign company to seek overseas business. SPC Samlip and Siam Makro are considering the establishment of a joint venture to produce and distribute Korean bakery products in Thailand.“Under the agreement, we will begin our bakery business in Thailand and expand it further in the Southeast Asian market. We will also promote the excellence of Korean baked goods in Thailand based on our business experience that has led the domestic market in Korea,” an SPC official said.SPC Samlip will start with a consignment operati

Mar 6, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
SPC Samlip enters Thai bakery market
Companies

Why Korea's children's wear market keeps growing despite falling birthrate

A Fendi Kids store at Hyundai Department Store in southern Seoul / Courtesy of Hyundai Department StoreBy Kim Jae-heunThe children's wear market in Korea has continued to grow in recent years, despite the nation's falling birthrate, as parents and other relatives spend more on clothes and other kids' items, according to retail industry officials, Friday. According to the Korea Federation of Textile Industries, the domestic children's apparel market expanded by about 32 percent from 912 billion won ($699.5 million) in 2020 to 1.2 trillion won in 2022.Given that the overall domestic fashion market grew 13.5 percent from 40.3 trillion won to 45.7 trillion won during the same period, the children's clothing market showed much faster growth.As people barely give birth to more than one child per household, parents and grandparents do not hesitate to spend much money on their one and only child. According to Statistics Korea, the country's birthrate was 0.78 in 2022, down sharply from 1.17 in 2016. The figure, meaning that far less than one baby is born on average per woman, was the lowest

Mar 3, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Why Korea's children's wear market keeps growing despite falling birthrate
Companies

Food firms hold off on price hikes as gov't wrangles with inflation

A customer selects a sauce product at a store in Seoul, on Feb. 23. NewsisBy Kim Jae-heunA growing number of local food firms are calling off plans to raise the prices of their products, despite soaring raw material costs and rising wages, as the government increases pressure on them to join its fight against inflation, according to industry officials Thursday.Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Chung Hwang-keun met with the CEOs of 13 local food giants on Tuesday and asked them to refrain from increasing food prices ― at least during the first half of this year.The country's largest food firm, CJ CheilJedang, took the lead to put its price hike plan on hold.“Although the company still faces pressure to cope with the rising cost of raw materials and other production expenses, we decided not to increase food prices to ease the burden felt by consumers,” a CJ CheilJedang official said. The food giant originally planned to increase the price of its processed foods, including “Katsuo udon” and “Spicy udon,” by an average of 9.5 percent from

Mar 3, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Food firms hold off on price hikes as gov't wrangles with inflation
Companies

SK sells stake in security service arm to Wallenberg for 864.6 billion won

SK Square Vice Chairman Park Jung-ho speaks during a press conference held at the Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, on Feb. 28. Courtesy of SK SquareBy Kim Jae-heunSK Square, the investment arm of SK Telecom, sold a portion of its stake and management rights in SK Shieldus, Korea's second-largest security service provider, to EQT Partners, a private equity fund (PEF) operated by Sweden's largest conglomerate, the Wallenberg Group, for 864.6 billion won, the Korean company said Wednesday.Remaining as the second-largest shareholder with a 32-percent stake, SK Square seeks to grow SK Shieldus into a “global comprehensive security service firm” through joint management with the Swedish PEF, its top executive said.“The acquisition of SK Shieldus' stake by EQT Infrastructure under EQT Partners, a Wallenberg Group investment company, was unanimously approved,” SK Square Vice Chairman Park Jung-ho said during a press conference held at the Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, Tuesday (local time).In 2018, SK Telecom and Macquarie acquired a 10

Mar 2, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
SK sells stake in security service arm to Wallenberg for 864.6 billion won
Companies

Liquor firms freeze alcohol prices due to gov't pressure

A customer picks up a bottle of 40240 Dokdo soju from the refrigerator at a convenience store in Seoul on Jan. 19. Courtesy of BGF RetailBy Kim Jae-heunBrewers and distilling companies here have decided to freeze the prices of their alcoholic beverages for the time being due to government interference. This is all part of the government's campaign to curb inflationary pressures, according to industry officials Wednesday.The country's largest liquor firm HiteJinro said Monday that it has no plan to increase the price of soju, or Korean distilled spirits, for some time. “There are several factors that push us to increase the price (of soju and beer), but we are not considering it so as to lessen the burden on consumers and restaurant owners in the current economic slump,” a HiteJinro official said.Oriental Brewery (OB) also said it will freeze the price of its beer products.“Despite the government's decision to raise the tax on beer, we will not increase our products' prices,” an OB official said. Earlier in January, the government revised the Enforcement Decree

Mar 1, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Liquor firms freeze alcohol prices due to gov't pressure
Companies

Budget-conscious consumers flock to convenience stores for lunch

A convenience store clerk scans lunch packs at a convenience store in Seoul on Jan. 17. YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunA 34-year-old office worker surnamed Kim said he does not have many choices for lunch these days as it costs at least 10,000 won ($7.5) to eat at a restaurant.“My wife only gives me a 500,000 won monthly allowance from my salary which I use to buy lunch and drink coffee. In other words, I have 16,129 won to spend a day and if I want to save some money, I have to reduce my lunch cost,” Kim said.A 28-year-old college student surnamed Lee works part-time at a coffee shop and gives private tutoring lessons to high school students to pay rent for his flat and make a living. A recent surge in food prices has forced him to cut costs when dining out by choosing more cost-effective lunch packs sold at convenience stores.“Saving at least 5,000 won a day helps a lot. I need extra money to hang out with my friends and go on dates with my girlfriend, which means I can't afford to spend more than 10,000 won per meal. Convenience store lunch boxes are the best option,&rdquo

Mar 1, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Budget-conscious consumers flock to convenience stores for lunch
Companies

Starbucks reduces product marketing, focuses on customer service

Staff make beverages for customers at a Starbucks Korea store in Seoul on Feb. 22 when the company held a discount event for two days from Feb. 22 to Feb. 24. Korea Times fileBy Kim Jae-heunStarbucks Korea has changed its business strategy to decrease its marketing in order to focus more on improving service quality since October last year when it replaced scandal-hit former CEO Song Ho-seop with new chief Song Jung-hyun, according to company officials Tuesday.Previously, the coffee chain had placed a priority on promoting the sales of its popular consumer products such as diaries, calendars and tumblers every January and February to attract customers and generate solid profits.However, as the company received negative press on multiple occasions in 2022, it decided to prioritize improving the brand's tarnished reputation this year.The most prominent event it carried out recently was to sell its Iced Americano beverages for only 2,500 won ($1.89) from Feb. 22 to Feb. 24. This event was held to celebrate the company's achievement of surpassing 10 million users for its Starbucks Reward

Feb 28, 2023By Kim Jae-heun
Starbucks reduces product marketing, focuses on customer service
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