"Chuseok Gifts Contactlessly"...Retail Industry Expands Online Gifting

Lotte Hi-Mart will hold an 'Online Gift' event until the 22nd.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Ahead of this year's Chuseok holiday, as social distancing measures continue to be strengthened, the distribution industry is expanding non-face-to-face gift-giving services.

According to the industry on the 4th, Lotte Hi-Mart is holding an 'Online Gift' event until the 22nd. Customers select the product they want to gift, enter the recipient's name and mobile phone number, and make a payment. The gift is then sent with a thank-you card via message. By entering the address in the received message, the gift can be delivered to the desired location. If the recipient clicks on 'I also want to send a gift' in the message, they are connected to the 'Gift' specialty section within the Lotte Hi-Mart online shopping mall, allowing them to send a return gift.

During the event period, Lotte Hi-Mart offers up to 100,000 L.Points depending on the home appliance model to customers using the service, and holds a draw to give away a one-night stay voucher at Lotte Hotel Jeju. Winners can be confirmed on the Lotte Hi-Mart online shopping mall event page at the end of October.

Market Kurly has also introduced a 'Gift Service' that allows sending gifts without knowing the recipient's address. To commemorate this launch, until the 20th, a maximum 10% discount coupon and 5% point accumulation benefits are provided for products marked with the gift icon.

Lotte ON operates an 'Untact Holiday Gift Corner.' By using the gift service, gifts can be sent via KakaoTalk message or text message by only knowing the recipient's mobile phone number. This corner sells popular Chuseok gifts such as fresh and health functional foods, as well as home meal replacement (HMR) products for those spending the holiday alone at home.

An industry official said, "As the social atmosphere of spending the holiday non-face-to-face instead of visiting hometowns spreads, online gift-giving services that allow safe and convenient exchange of gifts are steadily gaining popularity," and added, "We have prepared various benefits for Chuseok, so we recommend expressing your precious feelings to family and acquaintances."

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