E-Mart puts up good performance thru warehouse store business

Workers prepare for the opening of E-Mart's very first warehouse store Traders in Nowon-gu, Seoul in this 2019 file photo. / Yonhap

By Kim Jae-heun

E-Mart, the country's largest retailer, said Thursday combined sales from January and February jumped substantially despite the outbreak of the coronavirus.

The core factor was that customers flocked to the retailer's budget sub-brand store, E-Mart Traders, to buy cheap daily necessities, such as packs of instant noodles, and daily items as the virus spread across the country.

The company said its warehouse store business sales rose more than 20 percent during the two-month period, while E-Mart's offline stores have been continuing their losing streak in terms of sales. Officials said customers were turning to its warehouse stores for a variety of items closely associated with preparing for and dealing with the virus, such as cleaning supplies, sanitizers and health aids.

They said they are on track to stay in stock of these daily necessity items. “We are getting deliveries daily. But it's quite tough to quantify what the detailed financial impact will be to our future,” an official said, referring to the potential business impact of the virus outbreak.

The future of E-Mart is looking good as it owns online platform SSG.com. Recently, online shopping has become popular as many people moved to purchase items via their phones and computers.

E-Mart's other subsidiaries “No Brand” and “Electromart,” categorized as specialty stores selling affordable generic brand grocery and electronic goods, saw a 10.6 percent increase in sales in January and February.