[Report] QR Codes Appear in 50-Year-Old Traditional Market... This Chuseok's Changed Markets

28il Suyu Jarae Market Visit
Temporary Bustle as Corona Chill Seems Forgotten
Linking Side Dishes, Butcher, and Dumpling Shops Online and Mobile
Sales Jump 50%... Expecting System Improvements
'Custom Tteok' Gone, Tteok Shop Sales Halved

The scene of Suyu Traditional Market around 4 p.m. on the 28th. Customers are shopping before the Chuseok holiday. A banner displays a market promotion message stating that it is "safe from the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19)."

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] "Prepare for the Chuseok holiday here before you go!"

On the afternoon of the 28th, two days before the Chuseok holiday, around 4 PM, Seoul's Suyu Traditional Market was bustling with customers filling every alley. Besides the golden-brown jeon (Korean pancakes), rice cakes, songpyeon, kimchi, namul (seasoned vegetables), fresh produce, and ceremonial table offerings, long lines formed at food stalls selling the market’s specialties such as spicy red skate sashimi salad, mini gimbap, twisted doughnuts (kkwabaegi), dumplings, bindaetteok (mung bean pancakes), and fried chicken. After being sluggish due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the market seemed to be lively again. Kim Hye-yeon (pseudonym), a housewife in her 50s who filled her shopping basket, said, "This year was very tough because business was slow due to COVID-19," but she smiled and added, "Still, this is the place where I feel most comfortable coming."

The scene was similar to previous Chuseok holidays, but a breeze of digital innovation was also felt at Suyu Traditional Market. Throughout the market, which boasts a history of over 50 years, various promotional signs and smartphone QR codes were displayed, including "Card Accepted," "Onnuri Gift Certificates," "Zero Pay," as well as "Baedal Minjok" and "Noljang (Come to the Market) App Accepted Here." These measures aim to enhance customer convenience. While long-distance delivery via courier was the norm before, since early this year, real-time delivery within the Gangbuk area of Seoul has become possible through Naver Smart Store’s "Shopping in My Neighborhood" and the public delivery app "Noljang (Come to the Market)."

Ji Sun-hee (pseudonym), an employee at "Haeseong Banchan," which has high review counts on Naver Smart Store’s "Shopping in My Neighborhood," said, "The first floor is busy, but the second floor is even busier preparing nationwide ceremonial table deliveries and shipments," adding, "Since joining Naver and Noljang, we have become more famous, and sales have increased by about 50% compared to before." One butcher shop selling pork belly and neck meat saw a 10% sales increase, while a shop specializing in twisted doughnuts and dumplings, with king-sized dumplings as the main menu, experienced about a 20% rise. Han Joo-yeon (pseudonym), the dumpling shop owner, said, "Since we inform our regular customers first, some order early to support us." There was also consensus among merchants that government-level system improvements are needed to boost sales, such as updating product cycles, photos, detailed descriptions, and increasing delivery staff. Some suggested that anonymized purchase data could be converted into a public database (DB) to better analyze customers.

On the other hand, some places were hit hard by COVID-19 and did not benefit from the Chuseok sales boost. This explains the higher expectations placed on online and mobile sales. Last year, stalls were filled with rice cakes and colorful songpyeon, but this year, small packaged products priced around 10,000 won dominated. Kim Ji-hye (pseudonym), an employee at a rice cake shop, sighed, "This Chuseok, families are not gathering, so group songpyeon orders have drastically decreased," adding, "Custom rice cake orders are important, but compared to last year, it feels like they have been cut in half." Yoon Ji-young (pseudonym), who runs a branded underwear store, said, "We haven’t really seen the effect of the app," and added weakly, "Sales seem to have increased a little because it’s Chuseok, but business is still tough."

Established in the 1960s, Suyu Traditional Market is one of Seoul’s representative markets that achieves economies of scale together with the nearby Suyu Market and Suyu Traditional Market. On Naver’s Shopping in My Neighborhood, Suyu Traditional Market ranks third in the number of favorites with 25,212, following Hwagok Bon-dong Market and Amsa General Market. Among Noljang partner markets, it has the largest number of merchants in the Seoul area, with active participation from the vendors. In April, Gangbuk-gu, Seoul, signed an agreement with Noljang, a startup-focused company, to revitalize Suyu Market. They provided a space in the market’s public parking lot for preparing deliveries and supported operating costs with 30 million won.

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