CU Breaks Industry Record with 100 Stores Offering 24-Hour Delivery Service

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] CU announced on the 2nd that it will expand its 24-hour delivery service, which was operated at about 50 locations nationwide, to 100 stores nationwide starting this month.

In March, CU became the first in the industry to introduce a 24-hour delivery service, doubling the previous service hours (11 AM to 11 PM) at 50 stores nationwide. After about three months of testing, clear customer demand for the 24-hour delivery service and a significant increase in franchise sales led to doubling the number of stores offering the service.

According to CU, the average daily delivery sales at stores operating the 24-hour delivery service were 6.9 times higher than those operating the 12-hour delivery service. When converted to hourly sales, delivery sales per hour were 3.4 times higher at the 24-hour service stores compared to the 12-hour service stores.

In particular, for stores operating the 24-hour delivery service, half (44%) of daily delivery sales occurred between 11 PM and 7 AM the next day, with the highest delivery demand observed between 11 PM and midnight, confirming strong demand for late-night delivery.

Popular delivery items during late-night hours (11 PM to 3 AM) included carbonated drinks to accompany late-night snacks, skewers, and fried chicken pieces as instant cooked foods, followed by lunch boxes, which have recently seen many new products launched with anju (side dish) concepts.

During the morning hours (5 AM to 8 AM), coffee beverages such as canned coffee and cup coffee, as well as health functional drinks like hangover relief drinks and vitamin drinks, ranked first and second in sales. Additionally, fruits, sandwiches, and milk, which can be conveniently consumed as breakfast substitutes, were also popular items.

As word spread about the sales increase effect from introducing the 24-hour delivery service, franchise stores operating the existing 12-hour delivery service have rapidly increased requests to extend operating hours. CU plans to introduce the 24-hour delivery service at about 1,000 stores nationwide by the end of this year by strengthening cooperation with delivery specialists.

Jo Seohae, head of the Service Platform Team at BGF Retail, said, “Due to the upcoming rainy season and tropical nights starting this week, demand for convenience store delivery services instead of dining out is expected to increase further. CU will expand the 24-hour delivery service nationwide according to customer and franchisee demand, and plans to introduce time-specific exclusive sets that can only be purchased during late-night or morning hours through data analysis.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.