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E-mart, Lotte Mart, Homeplus struggle to compete with convenience stores

By Kim Jae-heunE-mart CEO Kang Heui-seokE-mart, Lotte Mart and Homeplus have been losing customers to convenience stores amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as more people are avoiding visiting large stores so as to minimize the risk of infection, according to retail industry analysts Friday. In contrast, CU, GS25 and other convenience store chains have seen their sales surge over the past two years, as more people opt to buy daily necessities near their homes.The three large discount store operators have come up with countermeasures to strengthen themselves in the premium grocery sector as well as renovate underperforming stores, but it is uncertain whether these efforts will succeed. Last year was the first time that convenience stores beat supermarket chains, winning 0.2 percentage points more of the offline retail market share. The “big three” convenience stores ― GS25, CU and 7-Eleven ― accounted for a share of 15.9 percent, while E-mart, Lotte Mart and Homeplus took only 15.7 percent in 2021. Lotte Shopping CEO Kang Hee TaeThe gap between the two retail sectors has

Feb 5, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
E-mart, Lotte Mart, Homeplus struggle to compete with convenience stores
Companies

Uniqlo to close more stores while enhancing online options

FRL Korea CEOs Tatase Satoshi, on the left, and Jeong Hyeon-seok, on the right, pose after donating 3,000 Uniqlo pieces of clothing to the elderly at its headquarters in Seoul, on Aug. 2020. Courtesy of FRL KoreaBy Kim Jae-heunUniqlo will shut down three more money-losing stores this month as part of its efforts to improve the company's bottom line, which has been significantly hit by anti-Japanese sentiment among Korean consumers, the Japanese clothing brand said Thursday. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has also played its part in leading to a decline of offline customers.Uniqlo is one of the Japanese firms that was hit hard by local customers' movement to boycott Japanese products in 2019 after the Japanese government took retaliatory economic measures against the Korean Supreme Court's 2018 decision ordering Japanese company Mitsubishi to compensate surviving Korean victims of wartime forced labor. Over the past two years, about 60 Uniqlo stores out of the 190 in Korea have closed down, including its signature branches in Myeong-dong, Jamsil and Gangnam in the Shinsegae Department

Feb 4, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
Uniqlo to close more stores while enhancing online options
Companies

Consumers disappointed by Binggrae's price hikes

By Kim Jae-heunBinggrae Chairman Kim Ho-younIce cream lovers here are disappointed by Binggrae's move to raise prices of its flagship ice cream products, breaking an earlier promise not to do so, according to consumers and company officials Wednesday.Binggrae acquired rival Haitai Ice Cream in 2020 and argued at the time that the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) should approve its acquisition because it will prevent Lotte Confectionery from monopolizing the market and jacking up the prices of frozen snacks.But instead of holding Lotte in check, Binggrae also decided to increase ice cream prices. Binggrae said it will raise the prices of its steady-sellers like “Together” and “Melona” by 25 percent starting Feb. 3. Lotte Confectionery will also increase the prices of its best-sellers like “World Cone” and “Snow Ice” by the same margin.Melona ice cream / Courtesy of Binggrae“Most of Korean's favorite popsicles are made by Lotte or Binggrae. When they raise the prices of their best and steady-sellers, people have no option but to take it,

Feb 3, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
Consumers disappointed by Binggrae's price hikes
Companies

HiteJinro faces dark business outlook in 2022

By Kim Jae-heunHiteJinro, one of the country's largest brewers, is expected to remain in the doldrums this year, hit by continued sluggish sales of beer and other alcoholic beverages amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, according to industry analysts, Thursday.A large portion of HiteJinro's revenue comes from selling beer and soju, a clear distilled alcoholic beverage of Korean origin, in restaurants and bars. But due to the outbreak of the Omicron variant last November and toughened quarantine measures adopted by the government as a result, it looks certain HiteJinro's business will slip ― at least in the first half of this year.“If we see a dramatic turnaround with COVID-19 with the development and commercialization of a virus remedy, we can expect a quick recovery for HiteJinro. However, if the worst situation continues like now, 2022 will also be a tough year for the soju maker,” said an industry official, who declined to be named. Korea's daily COVID-19 cases surpassed 14,000 amid rapidly spreading Omicron cases on Thursday. It broke the record for a third consecuti

Feb 3, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
HiteJinro faces dark business outlook in 2022
Companies

AmorePacific, LG H&H struggle to rebound in Chinese market

By Kim Jae-heunAmorePacific Chairman Suh Kyung-baeAmorePacific and LG Household & Health Care (LG H&H), Korea's two largest cosmetics makers, have been struggling to rebound in the Chinese market, as consumers there continue to shun Korean-made beauty products, according to industry analysts Thursday.The analysts said that the two Korean firms have been losing market shares steadily to Chinese brands, which have improved product quality and design rapidly with government support, adding that the ongoing consumption slump there has been affecting their respective bottom lines negatively. AmorePacific and LG H&H also failed to win loyalty from Chinese consumers who continue to prefer L'Oreal, Chanel and other Western brands over Korean ones.The declining popularity of Korean cosmetics in China has affected LG H&H's sales and operating profit to drop by 3.4 percent and 5.9 percent, respectively, in the fourth quarter of last year. AmorePacific has not yet revealed its performance, but local securities firms expect its operating profit to decline by more than 10 percent c

Feb 3, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
AmorePacific, LG H&H struggle to rebound in Chinese market
Companies

Woowa Brothers pressed to earn more for Delivery Hero

From left, Woowa Brothers founder Kim Bong-jin and Delivery Hero CEO Niklas Oestberg / Korea Times fileBy Kim Jae-heunWoowa Brothers, the operator of the country's No. 1 food delivery service, Baedal Minjok (Baemin), has come under increasing pressure to improve its profitability, as its parent company, Delivery Hero, which has exited from Germany and Japan, depends more on the platform. The German firm plans to close other unprofitable businesses across the globe to bolster its bottom line.Delivery Hero has been showing continuous losses for a while. Its operating loss in the first half of 2021 reached 918 million euros (1.26 trillion won), which has more than doubled from 448 million euros a year ago. Its sales also increased twofold to 2,680 million euros (3.68 trillion won) in the same period.Woowa Brothers has nearly doubled its sales too, from 565.4 billion won in 2019 to 1.09 trillion won in 2020, but it lost money for two consecutive years. In 2019 and 2020, the Korean company's operating loss was marked at 36.4 billion won and 11.2 billion won, respectively, as it had to spe

Feb 2, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
Woowa Brothers pressed to earn more for Delivery Hero
Companies

Market Kurly, SSG.com uneasy about IPO amid plunging stock market

By Kim Jae-heunMarket Kurly CEO Sophie KimMarket Kurly, SSG.com and Oasis Market are concerned about their upcoming initial public offerings (IPOs) as shares of listed online retailers have plunged in line with the recent global stock market downturn, according to market analysts Thursday.Their share values are now expected to be much lower than they used to be a month ago, meaning that they will be able to raise less money if they go public. This quandary means that they may decide to delay the IPOs until the stock market bounces back, analysts said.Normally, a company's public offering price is calculated after referring to a listed firm's price-earnings ratio (PER) or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA). With no Korean e-commerce firm listed on the local bourse, the three online retailers are left with no option but to refer to international companies like Coupang, Ocado and MissFresh when calculating their initial offering prices.SSG.com CEO Kang Heui-seokMarket Kurly, in particular, wants to be the first company among the three to go public in t

Jan 30, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
Market Kurly, SSG.com uneasy about IPO amid plunging stock market
Companies

BAT Sacheon plant provides managerial education to young technicians

Employees of BAT Sacheon Factory pose during the graduation ceremony of the Technical Growth Academy held at Gyeongsang National University in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, on Wednesday. Courtesy of BAT GroupBy Kim Jae-heunBritish American Tobacco (BAT) Korea Manufacturing, also known as BAT Sacheon Factory, successfully finished its employee training program in collaboration with Gyeongsang National University (GNU), Wednesday. BAT Sacheon Factory has been operating its Technical Growth Academy (TGA) with GNU to cultivate technicians since last year. The graduation ceremony was held at the university's Jinnong Hall, located in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province.TGA is a joint training system organized with GNU designed to raise the competency of BAT's technical operators and develop their managerial skills. Last year, BAT Sacheon Factory selected six qualified employees to receive systematic training in industrial technology, foreign languages, leadership and Microsoft Office User Specialist (MoS) courses for six months.Kim Ji-hyong, BAT Sacheon Factory's head of manufacturing, pa

Jan 27, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
BAT Sacheon plant provides managerial education to young technicians
Companies

CJ Logistics delivery workers' strike spreads to Lotte, Hanjin

Union representatives from the Lotte, Hanjin, Korea Post and Logen logistics firms hold a press conference in front of CJ Logistics' building in Seoul, Dec. 30, 2021. YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunThe CJ Logistics delivery workers' union has requested delivery workers at Lotte Global Logistics, Hanjin Transportation and other logistics firms to join their ongoing strike, according to union officials, Wednesday.CJ Group is one of the largest conglomerates in South Korea. It is comprised of numerous businesses in various industries: food products and food services, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, entertainment and media, home shopping and logistics.If the workers at the two other companies follow CJ's delivery workers' union strike, the work stoppage will likely cause a bigger disruption to the country's logistics networks ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, one of the busiest periods of the year for delivery workers.An increasing number of parcels have been delayed by CJ union's strike, which began on Dec. 28. In a bid to achieve their goals ― which are to force the firm to increase wages and

Jan 26, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
CJ Logistics delivery workers' strike spreads to Lotte, Hanjin
Companies

Lotte Department Store CEO working to change company culture

Lotte Department Store in Gangnam, Seoul / Courtesy of Lotte ShoppingBy Kim Jae-heun Lotte Department Store's new CEO Jung Jun-ho is striving to change the authoritarian leadership style that has long been deep-rooted in the company. With his appointment last month, Jung first introduced his “ABCD” policy, an acrostic for “agility,” “being proactive,” “creative” and “design is everything, everywhere.” The new chief asked for quick decision-making and horizontal communication between all employees.However, the company is struggling to break down its deep-seated, vertically oriented corporate culture. Jung has been throwing out topics for discussion consistently on the company's intranet, but most employees only compliment his opinions, rather than actually sharing theirs. Jung wants to establish a work culture and environment where people freely share their ideas, but the existing system is not used to it. Catching on to ongoing trends quickly is imperative in the retail business, and the Lotte Group chairman has given Jung t

Jan 26, 2022By Kim Jae-heun
Lotte Department Store CEO working to change company culture
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