Lotte can be stuffy, crowded, overpriced

Shoppers walk through Lotte Department Store during a premium sale event in this file photo. / Korea Times

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia

On a Saturday afternoon, the aisles are so packed with people at the Lotte Department Store in downtown Seoul that one can hardly move without being jostled and elbowed by other shoppers.

Such is the price of being the most popular department store in the country. Lotte Town, which is comprised of the Lotte Department store, high-end Avenuel and trendy Young Plaza, attracts hundreds of thousands of shoppers and tourists to Sogong-dong and to its 22 other outlets throughout the country, every day.

The department store is a place where one can find almost anything you need. If you’re hungry, head to the basement to shop for organic food, kimchi, chocolates and cupcakes. If you need a fresh new look, go to the cosmetics counter for a make-over. If you want the latest Gucci tote bag or Ferragamo shoes, you can find them here.

Throughout the entire block of stores, one can shop for clothes for men, women and children, sports gear, computers, coffeemakers, beds, TVs, toys, CDs, linen, lamps, accessories and almost anything you can think of, within crowded, air-conditioned confines.

The Lotte Department Store opened its doors in 1979, and is celebrating its 31st anniversary this year. On its website, the company said it aims to pursue customer-friendly operations while offering great value. ``At Lotte Department Store, the customer always comes first,’’ it said.

But does the company really put its customer first?

Lotte Department Store’s layout often feels cramped and chaotic since it seems every inch of store space is being maximized, to the detriment of a comfortable shopping experience for the customer.

Being successful means more crowds, which is especially bad during the summer season. Because of the government regulations on the air-conditioning temperature to be set no lower than 26 degrees, the department store feels even hotter and more cramped.

The Lotte department store has also placed little counters selling various items near the escalators to earn more revenue on the already limited space available at the store.

While the stalls have attracted many shoppers to make impulse buys, it has also created even more congestion near the escalators, making it uncomfortable for shoppers to freely walk and enjoy shopping.

On the first floor, there are stalls selling perfume, jewelry and candles, right next to the escalators. On other floors, there are counters selling shoes, bags, hats and other accessories in the connecting walkways between the buildings, which only add to the airless atmosphere of the department store.

Another area that is quite disorganized is the basement, which has a food court, imported food section, fresh produce and meat, but also a small fashion and beauty section. Walking from one area to another can be a bit disconcerting. The smell of toasted seaweed in the air, while one is browsing bargain cosmetics can be a turn off.

The imported food section offers hard-to-find food items from Japan, Italy, the U.S., Thailand and other countries. Occasionally, there are sale items, such as cookies, chocolates and chips, available for only 1,000 won to 3,000 won, but the expiration date is within the next couple of months.

Overpriced items

Many cite the advantages of the department store: it is a one-stop-shop; beauty counters offer free samples; free gifts and gift certificates for minimum purchases; and seasonal sales.

Items sold at department stores are typically higher priced, especially with imported brands. A Marc by Marc Jacobs nylon tote bag retails for 301,000 won at Lotte, but the U.S. retail price is only $198.

The cosmetics counters are also no exception, giving free samples because the products are already overpriced. For example, a bottle of Fresh’s Sugar perfume costs 155,000 won. In the duty-free store, it is only around 99,000 won, while in the U.S., it is only $75 or 88,000 won.

Good service is what Lotte Department Store prides itself in. Some sales assistants are eagerly helping shoppers, overly so, badgering them with the latest items and pushing to make a sale. For a shopper, sometimes it feels like the sales personnel are following you to make sure that you’re not stealing.

The much-hyped sale events at Lotte Department Store claim to offer good deals. However, the ``sale’’ prices are not quite as low as one would expect, usually only 20 to 40 percent. But since the base prices are already quite high, the discounted prices do not amount to much.

Over the weekend, a special three-day luxury brand sale at the ninth floor event hall was held, attracting hordes of shoppers looking for bags, clothes and shoes that were advertised as 40 to 70 percent off the regular price. The sale included brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Dolce & Gabbana, Bally, Vivienne Westwood, Armani Exchange and Diesel.

It was a frenzied atmosphere, as people almost wrestled with each other to grab 400,000 won Coach and Etro handbags. However, the sale price tags still seemed a bit pricey, with Ralph Lauren polo shirts at 220,000 won, Marni dresses at 900,000 won, Vivienne Westwood bag for 1.29 million won and even fur coats for 14 million won.

More interpretation needed

There are hundreds of tourists, mostly from Japan and China, flocking to Lotte Town every day. The store is obviously aware of its multicultural clientele, with the PA system making announcements in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese and brochures printed in the same languages. The touch-screen info kiosks offer different languages, but the information is limited to how to find the duty-free section, currency exchange and information desk.

While there are supposed to be language interpreters at two information counters, there were none to be found at the time of this reporter’s visit.

One of the most glaring omissions is the lack of English, Japanese or Chinese information about the in-store promotions. There are announcements that a customer who makes a 200,000 won purchase would be given a 10,000 gift certificate for a limited time, but it is only in Korean. There are also no clear signs in other languages that detail the mechanics of how to redeem the gift certificate or other free items.

Lotte may also need to take a closer look at the English labels for its new ``premium’’ line of healthy food and personal care products. With the premium label, it seems to be an excuse to slap a higher price tag on coffee, garlic chips, ginseng tea and shampoo.

On the honey shampoo’s label, it reads: ``Honey shapoo (sic) is naturalism item giving fresh energy and moisture to honey which (sic) authenticated.’’ For the price of 14,000 won for a bottle of shampoo, it seems only reasonable that the company exert more effort in checking its English labels.

As a company that claims to put the customer first, it seems Lotte Department Store still has a long way to go in truly offering first-rate customer service.