Three Major Convenience Store Chains Surpass Department Store 'Big 3' Sales for the First Time Last Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, last year the sales of the three major convenience store chains surpassed the sales of the 'Big 3' department stores in the offline retail industry for the first time.

According to the sales statistics of major retail companies from 2019 to 2020 released by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 14th, among the sales of 13 major offline retail companies surveyed last year, the three large discount stores?Emart, Homeplus, and Lotte Mart?accounted for the largest share at 33.4%.

The sales share of the three convenience store chains?CU, GS25, and Seven Eleven?was 31.0%, while the sales share of the three department stores?Lotte, Hyundai, and Shinsegae?was 28.4%. The sales share of the four corporate supermarkets (SSM), including Emart Everyday, was 7.1%.

In 2019, the sales shares of large discount stores, department stores, and convenience stores were 33.2%, 30.4%, and 29.2%, respectively. Back in 2016, according to Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy statistics, the sales shares of the three department stores and the three convenience stores in offline retail sales were 33.8% and 23%, showing a difference of more than 10 percentage points. Since then, as the convenience store market grew, the gap gradually narrowed, and last year, for the first time, convenience store sales surpassed department store sales.

Last year, the sales of the three convenience store chains increased by 2.4%, while the sales of the three department stores decreased by 9.8% due to social distancing measures leading to reduced outings and avoidance of multi-use facilities. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s retail sales data is based on each company’s current sales.

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