Changed Chuseok Gift Trends in the Era of High Inflation... "Quantity Over Quality, Emphasis on Cost-Effectiveness"

The average total budget is 250,000 KRW... 36% prepare with around 100,000 KRW

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Recent rapid price increases have led to a shift in Chuseok gift trends, with quantity and cost-effectiveness being valued more than quality.

According to Gmarket on the 18th, a survey was conducted from the 4th to the 10th of this month targeting 2,320 customers who visited Auction regarding their "Chuseok holiday gift plans." When asked about the number of Chuseok gifts they plan to purchase this year, 46% responded that they would "give gifts to more people," accounting for nearly half. In contrast, only 22% said they would "give gifts to fewer people." This contrasts with a survey on Lunar New Year gift purchasing plans earlier this year, where only 16% said they would "give gifts to many acquaintances," and 70% said they would "focus on giving gifts to family." When asked about the actual number of gifts to be purchased, 40% answered "5 or more," the highest proportion, followed by "3" (22%) and "4" (15%).

The impact of high inflation also reflected a rational consumer mindset. Compared to last year's Chuseok, 50% of respondents said they would "choose cost-effective gifts," while only 18% said they would "choose premium gifts." When asked what they consider most important when purchasing holiday gifts, "practicality" was the most common answer at 45%, followed by "affordable price" at 35%.

The average total budget allocated for Chuseok gift purchases was found to be 250,000 KRW. Six out of ten respondents said they would prepare Chuseok gifts within the "100,000 KRW range" (36%) and "200,000 KRW range" (24%), followed by ▲300,000 KRW range (18%) ▲500,000 KRW range (9%) ▲400,000 KRW range (6%) ▲600,000 KRW range (7%).

A Gmarket representative stated, "The unique nature of celebrating the holiday during a period of high inflation appears to be reflected in the Chuseok gift plans," adding, "Based on the survey results, we plan to introduce a variety of reasonable and practical holiday gifts through Chuseok promotions that meet customer demand."

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