"Indoor Outing on Rainy Days" Children's Day Holiday Scenes in Retail Sector

Shift to Indoor Outings Instead of Outdoor Activities
Department Store Sales Hold Up... Children's Sales Surge
Outlets and Amusement Park Convenience Stores Struggle

As the Children's Day holiday continued with stormy weather, the retail sector experienced mixed fortunes. With more people opting for indoor outings instead of the originally planned outdoor activities, department store sales held up well, while convenience stores at major tourist spots targeting outdoor customers struggled.

On the last day of the Children's Day holiday on the 7th, crowds were bustling in the restaurant area of The Hyundai Seoul in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.

According to the distribution industry on the 8th, sales at major domestic department stores during this year’s Children's Day holiday (May 5-7) increased by an average of 10% compared to the same period last year (May 6-8). Despite low expectations for holiday performance due to the surge in domestic and international travel during the endemic (periodic infectious disease outbreaks) golden holiday, sales held up well as more people chose indoor shopping over nearby outdoor activities due to the chilly weather.

Lotte Department Store saw a 10% increase in sales during this period. With more family customers accompanied by children on Children's Day, kids’ sales rose by 50%, and food and beverage (F&B) sales increased by 35% as outings combined with picnics grew. Additionally, as customers preparing for full-scale outdoor activities and those starting summer diets increased, athleisure, sports, and outdoor sales rose by 25%, 20%, and 20%, respectively.

Shinsegae Department Store also recorded a 10.6% increase in sales during the same period. With more people opening their wallets for children on Children's Day, toy category sales such as LEGO surged by 142.1%. Imported children’s products also grew by 46.3%. With the wedding season in full swing, furniture category sales including beds and sofas increased by 26.1%, mainly driven by customers preparing wedding gifts. As family visitors flocked to the department store, sales in the department store food court also rose by 36.1%. Hyundai Department Store saw a 9.8% increase in sales during this period as well. Influenced by indoor outing families visiting with children on Children's Day, children’s sales surged by 53.6%. Sports and young fashion sales also increased by 34.7% and 22.8%, respectively.

Indoor shopping malls were also bustling during the holiday. At Starfield, the number of families visiting indoor sports play facilities and indoor water parks increased significantly instead of outdoor activities. At Starfield Hanam, children crowded around to take photos with major characters from the popular animation 'Catch! Teenieping,' displayed in sizes ranging from 4 to 7 meters. HDC I'Park Mall, which presented experiential pop-up stores during the holiday, also saw an increase in visitors. Especially popular was the Nintendo Switch pop-up store launched in conjunction with the release of the Super Mario Brothers movie, which was designed to allow visitors to directly experience five Mario games. At Yeouido IFC Mall, the number of family customers going out with children and pets also increased significantly.

On the other hand, due to the chilly weather throughout the holiday and continuous rain for more than two days, convenience stores at major tourist spots and suburban outlets, which are usually highly affected by weather, struggled during the holiday period. Convenience stores near the Han River saw sales increase by around 30% during the sunny days of May 1-3, but during the holiday, sales were similar to or even lower than the previous year due to weather conditions. A convenience store official said, "Although the weather had a big impact during the holiday, we expect sales at convenience stores located in amusement parks to increase significantly this month as the number of Han River picnic-goers has surged since the endemic."

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