"Decisive Sales Period" Retail Industry Launches Pre-Order Sales for Chuseok Gift Sets

On the 3rd, models are introducing the 'Chuseok Untact Pre-Reservation' at Emart Seongsu branch. Emart and SSG.com will conduct pre-reservation sales of Chuseok gift sets from the 5th to September 6th. Benefits include a 40% discount when purchasing with event cards, Shinsegae gift certificates given according to purchase amount, and a 1% SSG Money reward on the purchase amount when buying event cards on SSG.com. Photo by Emart.

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] About a month and a half before Chuseok, the "Chuseok Gift Set Pre-Order Sale" has officially begun. Major department stores and large supermarkets have started preparing by offering gift sets at discounted prices. Since the results of pre-order sales are a key indicator that determines performance during the Chuseok peak season, each channel is focusing on product assortment, sales methods, and discount rates.

Lotte Department Store will conduct pre-order sales of Chuseok gift sets at all its stores from the 6th to the 26th. They will sell around 200 items including about 68 fresh food varieties such as livestock, fruits, and seafood, about 60 health food items, about 10 types of alcoholic beverages, and 60 processed food items. Representative products include Korean beef Tomahawk and T-bone steak sets, as well as Korean beef and Ulleung myeong-i sets, which can be purchased at a 15% discount when pre-ordered. A set mixing Arisu apples, golden pears, and Singo pears is offered at a 34% discounted price. A Lotte Department Store official said, "Pre-order sales of gift sets are very popular because they can be purchased at prices 10% to 60% cheaper than regular prices," adding, "Last year’s pre-order sales for Chuseok gift sets increased by 26.9% compared to the same period the previous year."

Shinsegae Department Store will run Chuseok gift set pre-orders from the 13th to the 3rd of next month. The pre-order items include about 40 agricultural products such as pears, apples, and dried persimmons; about 30 livestock products including Korean beef; about 40 seafood items such as dried yellow corvina and cutlassfish; and about 20 health food products. This is a total of 350 items, 60 more than last Chuseok. Korean beef, one of the most popular holiday items, is available with a 5-10% discount, dried yellow corvina up to 20%, fruits 10%, wine 70%, and health foods up to 70% off. In line with the ongoing non-face-to-face trend since last year, the number of online-exclusive products has more than doubled compared to last Chuseok. With a record-high scale of about 480 pre-order items, they plan to capture demand for contactless holiday shopping. On SSG.com, customers can preview department store pre-order products a week earlier. From the 5th to the 15th, a wide range of products from premium department store items to SSG.com exclusive sets called "Jeongdam" will be unveiled. Additional SSG Money rewards of up to 1.5 million KRW will be offered based on purchase amounts.

Hyundai Department Store will hold Chuseok gift set pre-orders from the 13th to the 2nd of next month. The event will start first at six nationwide stores including Apgujeong Main Store, Trade Center Store, The Hyundai Seoul, D-Cube City, Kintex Store, and Daegu Store, as well as online malls "The Hyundai.com" and "Hyundai Food Hall ToHome." The remaining 10 stores such as Cheonho and Sinchon, along with "Hyundai H Mall," will begin operations from the 20th. Hyundai Department Store explained that due to strengthened social distancing measures, demand for contactless gift-giving during the holidays is expected to increase, so they expanded the total number of items by about 20% compared to last year. They plan to offer about 1,000 sets in total. During the pre-order period, about 200 popular sets including Korean beef, dried yellow corvina, fresh fruits, and health foods will be selected and sold at up to 30% discount. Representative products include Hyundai Special Korean Beef Set "Yeon (蓮)" consisting of 1st grade sirloin roast and soup cuts (neck and shank) priced at 270,000 KRW (regular price 290,000 KRW), Yeonggwang Premium Dried Yellow Corvina "Jeong (情)" at 150,000 KRW (regular price 180,000 KRW), Hyundai Premium Apples and Pears "Mae (梅)" at 170,000 KRW (regular price 180,000 KRW), and Hyundai Premium Hwaseok Korean Beef Jerky Set at 96,000 KRW (regular price 120,000 KRW).

Large supermarkets have also started preparations. Emart will conduct pre-order sales of Chuseok gift sets from the 5th to the 6th of next month. During this pre-order period, customers using promotional cards (a total of 14 types) can receive up to 40% discount benefits, and depending on the purchase amount and period, they will be given Shinsegae gift certificates worth up to 15% of the purchase amount. Since last Chuseok, Emart has introduced services to minimize face-to-face contact, such as a "visit order service" where staff visit customers directly, a "simple gift set purchase service" on the Emart app that allows customers to check estimates and generate payment barcodes, and a "delivery address input service" that registers delivery addresses in bulk for parcel shipments.

Lotte Mart began pre-order sales of Chuseok gift sets earlier on August 29. For 42 days until September 8, pre-order sales will be conducted at all stores and on Lotte Mart Mall. The pre-order items have been expanded by about 20% compared to last year, preparing about 222 fresh food items such as Korean beef and fruits, 151 processed food items including canned goods and cooking oil, and 84 health functional foods, totaling about 900 items. Due to the non-face-to-face period, gift prices are expected to rise compared to usual years, so premium gift sets have been increased by about 15% compared to last year. They will also sell ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) gift sets made entirely of paper packaging and vegan gift sets to respond to the vegan trend. Since pre-order sales account for about 40% of total gift set sales and their importance is increasing, benefits have been enhanced to allow customers to purchase at even lower prices when pre-ordering.

Homeplus has also been accepting pre-orders for 478 Chuseok gift sets since August 29. The pre-order period continues until September 8. Online Chuseok gift set reservations began on the 2nd as well. They explained that they prepared quickly to match the increasingly early holiday gift purchasing season every year. Up to 50% discounts are offered to customers paying with 14 promotional cards and My Homeplus membership members. Depending on the purchase amount, customers can receive gift certificates or instant discounts worth up to 1.5 million KRW, with differentiated benefits applied by period so that early bird customers preparing for the holiday sooner receive more benefits.

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