A Bleak First Half Due to COVID-19... Boost Business in Q3

Early Bok Days and Vacations in a Row... Retail Industry's All-Out Battle to Capture the Peak Season
Opportunity to Recover Sales from July to September, Missing It Could Lead to Record Low Performance

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] The retail industry, which struggled in the first half of the year due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), is putting all its efforts into sales in the third quarter. If sales from July to September, covering the period from Chobok (the first of the three hottest days in summer) through summer vacations to Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving), do not recover, there will be virtually no opportunity to make up for the poor performance in the first half. The retail industry is launching various marketing campaigns to attract customers.

Department Stores Target Homecation Enthusiasts

According to the retail industry on the 13th, Lotte Department Store has planned a 'Travel Fair' themed around 'Homecations,' 'Wellness & Untact (contactless) Travel,' and 'Hotelcations.' This is because the number of 'staycation' travelers spending their summer vacations domestically has increased due to COVID-19. Staycation refers to a travel trend where people stay in one place without traveling far. From the 17th to the 21st, over 180 brands including The North Face, Black Yak, Travelmate, Nike, and Tom Ford will participate in the Travel Fair, offering special-priced products worth 8 billion KRW with discounts of up to 80%.

Targeting homecation enthusiasts, on the 17th, the main store's 9th-floor event hall will sell 100 limited sets each of the 'Nintendo Switch Animal Crossing Edition + Animal Crossing: New Horizons' set, and on the 18th, 100 limited sets of the 'Nintendo Switch Console + Mario Kart 8 Deluxe' set. In line with wellness and untact travel, a camping fair is also prepared. Camping gear such as tents, cookware sets, and sleeping bags will be sold at discounts of up to 70%. Representative products include Black Yak tents priced at 199,000 KRW and Kolping sleeping bags at 29,000 KRW. There is also a Travelmate special exhibition for hotelcation enthusiasts, offering travel convenience items such as suitcases, wash packs, and backpacks at discounts of up to 50%. In particular, suitcases will be sold at 60,000 KRW in limited quantities. Additionally, fashion items including swimsuits, sunglasses, and clothing will be sold at discounts ranging from 40% to 70%.

Shinsegae Department Store has launched 'Baek(百)cations Content' for customers who want to enjoy a safe vacation in the city until the 26th. The department store has newly established '100 Short-term Hobby Classes' at its academy. Although most group classes at the academy have been canceled recently due to COVID-19, short-term hobby classes such as cooking continue to see steady demand. A representative class is 'Making Lemon Scallop Pasta & Ricotta Salad,' where participants can prepare home brunch menus themselves. To attract customers seeking to escape the heat, Shinsegae Department Store is also running 'Gourmet Week' at all its restaurant areas and ready-to-eat food corners. Customers who purchase food worth more than 10,000 KRW on the same day will receive a coupon for a 5,000 KRW discount. A department store official said, "If we do not recover the slumped first-half sales, this year's performance could be the lowest ever," adding, "We will take various measures to increase sales in the second half."

"Miss the Peak Season and You're Doomed"

Large supermarkets are staking everything on sales from July to September, which cover summer vacations and Chuseok. The holiday season accounts for the largest share of total sales, followed by the vacation season. This year, the Chuseok holiday starts earlier than usual on September 30, so Chobok, vacations, and Chuseok will continue without any gaps.

To coincide with this year's Chobok, large supermarkets have prepared eco-friendly products. Lotte Mart is selling 400,000 chickens certified for 'Animal Welfare' at a 30% discount until the 15th. The Animal Welfare certification is a mark given to livestock products that have been humanely raised, transported, and slaughtered according to the Animal Protection Act. 'Animal Welfare Chicken for Baeksuk (1.1 kg)' and 'Animal Welfare Chicken for Braised Chicken Stew (1 kg)' are available at 5,950 KRW, 30% cheaper than the usual price. The price of young chicken for baeksuk (500g) is 2,520 KRW. Wando live abalones are discounted by 40%. Emart has signed supply contracts with five farms earlier this year to sell antibiotic-free young chickens at affordable prices. Antibiotic-free young chickens are raised for about 30 days without antibiotics, in conditions that prevent contact with external contaminants. Emart is selling two antibiotic-free young chickens (each 500g) at 5,584 KRW, 20% cheaper than the usual price, until the 15th.

Large supermarkets, anticipating that domestic travel will be popular this year due to COVID-19, have increased the supply of meat and are focusing on selling camping gear. Emart expects camping demand to increase further this year and is expanding the proportion of camping products. As more people camp due to COVID-19, sales of related products have also grown. From last month’s 25th to this month’s 7th, sales of camping gear at 30 Emart stores nationwide increased by 45% compared to the same period last year. Camping chairs, which are highly useful for urban camping by the Han River and indoor terrace camping, showed strong sales.

The 'Kakao Friends Twin Bench' sold out 500 planned units within a week, while the two types of 'Kakao Friends Picnic Chairs' and the 'Kakao Friends Mini Chair Set' sold 70% and 60% of their planned quantities, respectively. At Traders, Kakao Friends collaboration camping gear went on sale from the 6th of last month, and 2,000 planned units of two types of camping chairs sold out within three days. Due to unexpected reorders, 5,000 units, 2.5 times the initial quantity, will be sold starting from the 18th. Sales of North American brand Stanley camping gear, exclusively sold at Emart, also increased by 1,200% compared to last year. A large supermarket official explained, "We are preparing various product events reflecting customer demands according to changes in travel trends."

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