Home plus offers high-quality, fresh groceries at low prices

A grocery section at a Home plus store in Seoul. / Courtesy of Home plus

By Lee Hyo-sik

Home plus, one of Korea’s three largest discount store chains, has been receiving favorable responses from consumers for its sales campaign to offer fresh groceries at low prices. The company owned by British retailer Tesco has also been renovating its stores across the country to create a more shopper-friendly environment.

Its sale of fruits, vegetables and other fresh goods has jumped at a double-digit pace since March when the retailer began offering consumers high-quality goods at lower prices, sharing growth with its small business partners and boosting its community service programs, the company said.

Its sales of 500 fresh goods, including vegetables, fruits, livestock and fisheries, rose 22 percent from March 12-May 11 from the same period last year. In particular, Home plus earned 53 percent more from selling hanwoo, home-grown beef, during that two-month period.

“We have seen a sales surge in every grocery item since we began offering up to 30 percent discounts on agricultural and other fresh products,” a Home plus spokesman said. “We also started displaying products one by one, not in a bundle, so that shoppers can check every single item they purchase. We have also hired some 500 senior citizens to have them manage perishable goods at our stores and let them discard low-quality goods.”

The discount store chain also began offering up to 30 percent discounts on 1,950 most-frequently purchased household items on April 9, the spokesman said, adding that the sales soared 49 percent through May 11, compared to the same period last year.

“Our sales growth has helped boost the income of farmers and other business partners. We will also help them make inroads into foreign markets through our partner retailers in China and other countries,” the spokesman said. “We will improve our business practices to become a more reliable and responsible corporate citizen.”

He said Home plus will implement a wide range of changes to increase customer satisfaction and make greater contribution to improving local communities where its stores operate.