Coupang "Sales of Small Businesses Participating in Regional Win-Win Projects Before and After COVID-19 Up 177%"

Gyeongbuk, Which Faced Difficulties Due to COVID-19, Grows by 310%

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] Coupang announced on the 5th that the sales of small and medium-sized merchants participating in its regional win-win projects grew by 177% last year compared to 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. This figure is 80 percentage points higher than the 97% sales growth rate of all small and medium-sized merchants on Coupang during the same period.

In particular, the Gyeongbuk region, which faced the greatest difficulties at the early stage of the COVID-19 outbreak, and Jeju region, where Rocket Delivery started in February 2020, showed high sales growth rates of 310% and 349%, respectively. Hyun Jin-gyu, CEO of Cham Food Farm located in Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk, said, "Through the product evaluation meeting prepared jointly by Coupang and Gyeongsangbuk-do, we were able to create an opportunity to expand the sales channels of our company’s products," adding, "By participating in the win-win planning exhibition with benefits such as discount promotions and advertising support, our sales have grown 17 times compared to the initial stage of joining Coupang."

Coupang’s regional win-win projects, such as "Cheer Up Korea," were first launched to support local small business owners and agricultural and livestock producers who lost sales channels due to the economic downturn caused by COVID-19. Companies participating in the support projects can focus solely on product production through Coupang’s direct purchasing and receive direct assistance in increasing sales, including marketing support such as advertisements on the main homepage. So far, small business owners from Daegu, Gyeongbuk, Gyeongnam, Chungbuk, Chungnam, Gwangju, Jeonbuk, and Jeju have introduced local specialties and products to Coupang customers through the support projects.

Park Dae-joon, head of Coupang’s New Business Division, said, "More than 80% of Coupang’s trading partners are small and medium-sized merchants, and we are constantly striving to help their growth," adding, "Coupang will continue to expand collaboration with government agencies and local governments to become a reliable support for regional small and medium-sized merchants."

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