Korea Times Digital Content Reporter
Kwak Yeon-soo is a digital editor at The Korea Times creating, editing and curating digital content for the newspaper’s website, mobile app and social media. She previously covered a diverse array of cultural, political and business topics.
Models pose with goods delivered from Homeplus' “the CLUB” in this photo provided by the retailer, Friday. The CLUB is an online version of the hypermarket's “special” stores, which are a combination of large supermarkets and warehouse stores. The company said that consumers can also use a mobile app to place orders on about 10,000 products from these stores. Yonhap
By Kwak Yeon-sooGS25's “eight cans for 15,000 won ($12.6)” discount event /Captured from InstagramMajor convenience stores and large discount stores are turning to “patriotic marketing” as the “Boycott Japan” movement intensifies, according to industry officials, Friday.Following the widespread boycott as a result of Japan's export curb on high-tech materials, convenience store GS25 said they will exclude Japanese beer from an “eight cans for 15,000 won ($12.6)” discount event.“Considering the negative public sentiment toward Japan, we've decided to remove Japanese beer from the weekly discount event,” the company official said. Likewise, CU and 7-Eleven also joined the boycott movement by excluding Japanese beer from their imported beer discount promotions. E-mart's military burger / Courtesy of E-martThree major discount stores ― E-mart, Lotte Mart and Homeplus ― said they will suspend new orders for Japanese beer as sharp drops in sales has created a large inventory surplus.E-mart said Japanese beer sales dropped by 38.2
Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee, right, shakes hands with the U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross after the meeting held in Washington, Thursday (local time). YonhapUS says it will play a role in Seoul-Tokyo trade feudBy Kwak Yeon-sooTrade Minister Yoo Myung-hee has drummed up support from the United States in Korea's deepening trade dispute with Japan during her five-day stay in Washington, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Friday.The ministry said that the U.S. government has vowed to play a necessary role to help resolve the ongoing trade conflict between Seoul and Tokyo.At a series of meetings with U.S. trade and economy officials, Yoo claimed that Japan's export restrictions will not only affect Korea but also disrupt supply chains in the U.S. and those of global firms.On July 4, Tokyo implemented measures to curb exports of high-tech materials to Seoul, which are crucial for the production of chips and displays, saying that some of the materials have been handled inappropriately.Korea called Japan's allegations “groundless” and condemned the measure as
Halo Top's ice cream products / Courtesy of Halo Top KoreaBy Kwak Yeon-sooCompetition is heating up in the market for highly nutritious, low-calorie premium ice creams, with overseas name brands as well as domestic retailers getting in on the race, industry officials said Thursday. The growing popularity of premium ice cream is notable considering ice cream sales in general have decreased in recent years.Industry officials attributed the growth of the premium ice cream market to a high demand for products made from high-quality ingredients, a surge in the number of online food delivery platforms and growing health consciousness to curb sugar consumption.Amid the growing demand, Los Angeles-based Halo Top Creamery rolled out its products, on July 17, with an aim to target buyers who have preference for ultra-premium, low-calorie ice cream. Each pint of Halo Top contains 285 to 330 calories, and 19 grams of protein, according to the company.Three flavors ― Peanut Butter Cup, Birthday Party and Sea Salt Caramel ― are now available in GS25 and GS Super nationwide and online at Coupang an
Homeplus CEO Im Il-soon speaks during a press conference at the Plaza Hotel in Seoul, Thursday. / Courtesy of HomeplusBy Kwak Yeon-sooHomeplus will quadruple its online sales to 2.3 trillion won ($1.9 billion) by 2021 by transforming 140 stores into online distribution centers and expanding “special” stores nationwide, the company said Thursday. The retailer plans to increase the number of “Homeplus special” stores, which combine the characteristics of hypermarkets and warehouse-style stores, to 80 from the current 16.While unveiling Homeplus' business strategy, CEO Im Il-soon said the average sales growth rate of special stores was higher compared with regular stores. “The average sales growth rate of special stores was 12 percent higher than that of regular stores and 20 percent higher than that of our rivals operating nearby. Thus, we plan to expand to 30 special stores by end of this year and 80 by 2021,” Im said. “We also aim to grow sales by expanding online business. We will transform 140 stores into online distribution centers and inc
SK Group headquarters in Seoul / Korea Times fileBy Kwak Yeon-sooSK Group has decided to abolish its group-wide recruitment of new workers, currently done through two job fairs annually, and instead adopt more diverse hiring practices, the company said Wednesday.The move reflects a sense of crisis among many Korean firms that if they stick to traditional hiring practices, they will fail to secure employees with the knowledge and skills they need in the increasingly competitive business environment. SK and other big employers in the country hold two regular hiring events ― one in March and the other in September ― to meet with recent university graduates.However, SK Group said it will recruit new employees year-round starting next year, citing that massive hiring and training processes no longer suit the company's needs.It is weighing plans to allow affiliates to recruit new or experienced employees on their own, depending on their own needs. “We've been discussing this issue for a while and agreed upon the need to hire talented workers with the skills the company needs year-rou
TMON's new CEO Lee Jin-won / Courtesy of TMONBy Kwak Yeon-sooTMON's newly adopted policy to restrict customers' use of their reward points has been causing confusion and frustration among some customers. They are complaining that limiting the use of reward points lessens their benefits, preventing them from receiving additional discounts. “If they restrict the use of reward points, all those promotional events, including the TMON day, have less meaning,” one netizen wrote in an online community. Another wrote “I'd rather use another e-commerce platform for shopping.”TMON's notice of reward points policy change / Captured from TMON websiteStarting July 17, TMON has been allowing customers to spend only half of their reward points for an order that costs more than 500 won (42 cents). Before then, customers were able to spend their points like cash. The change in policy came as a means to increase customer visits and improve company profits, according to industry officials.They said offering such incentives, like reward points and discount coupons, is known to ke
Students and a model display Cheong Kwan Jang's student tonic “I-pass Brain,” at Korea House in Seoul, Monday. The ginseng company said the product helps boost the immune system and improve memory. Yonhap
Shinsegae Food's frozen pizza production line at Osan 2 production facility / Courtesy of Shinsegae FoodBy Kwak Yeon-sooShinsegae Food, which just completed the construction of its frozen pizza production facility south of Seoul, faces a rocky road ahead as consumers are eating premade products less.Shinsegae Food Co-Ceo Seong Yul-ki / Korea Times fileThe company said th newly built plant has an annual production capacity of 12,000 tons of pizza, worth 50 billion won ($42 million). Since 2017, it has invested 60 billion won in the six-story building, which occupies 18,125 square meters. The fourth floor of the plant is fully equipped with a frozen pizza production line. Not only its own pizza brand “Venu,” but also half-cooked pizzas targeted at B2B marketplaces will be produced at the new plant, it said. Latecomer Shinsegae Food said it will strive to compete with dominant market leaders Ottogi and CJ Cheiljedang, with market shares of 67 percent and 24 percent, respectively.But the business environment is showing no sign of improvement.According to Nielson Korea, the fr
By Kwak Yeon-sooNew BAT Korea CEO Kim Eui-soungBritish American Tobacco (BAT) Korea has named Kim Eui-soung as its new CEO, replacing Matthieu Juery who has been leading the brand here for the last two years, the company said Monday. As the first Korean to become the CEO of BAT Korea, Kim will be responsible for managing operations as well as leading both domestic and international businesses.Kim first joined BAT Korea as an area manager in 2008 and was later promoted to various positions in trade marketing. He is best known for launching the KENT brand in Korea in 2010.He has over 20 years of work experience in various industries, including food and beverages and pharmaceuticals. His expertise lies especially in the consumer goods sector, new business development and multinational corporation management. He previously worked at Nestle Korea and Pepsi Korea. Later he joined Boehringer Ingelheim Korea in 2014 as country head of Consumer Healthcare. He then served at Sanofi in 2017 as a general manager for Consumer Healthcare Korea and head of Cross Border E-Commerce in China.Under Kim