Ten New Stores Opened This Year... Coway Expands into Department Stores and Shopping Malls

Directly Operated Stores Open in Department Stores and Shopping Malls
10 Out of 13 Stores Opened This Year Are Located in These Venues

Coway has recently been opening a series of directly operated stores within department stores, where customers can experience its products firsthand. Out of the 13 stores opened this year, 10 are directly operated locations within department stores or shopping malls. After establishing an offline sales network nationwide, Coway is now taking more proactive steps to expand its points of contact with customers in their consumption activities. This move is driven by the growth of its sleep and healing care brand, BEREX, and the number of department stores where customers can experience Coway products is expected to continue increasing.

Coway Gallery Lotte Department Store Guri Branch

On September 10, Coway announced that in the second half of this year, it has opened Coway Gallery, its directly operated brand experience and sales stores, at locations such as Lotte Department Store Guri Branch and Gangnam Branch, Hyundai Department Store Mia Branch and Kintex Branch, and Shinsegae Department Store Uijeongbu Branch. Coway now operates 33 directly managed offline stores nationwide. Since first opening an experiential offline store in Gangnam at the end of 2021, Coway has expanded its presence every year. This year, in less than nine months, the company has opened the highest number of stores in its history, with more than 75% located in department stores. This clearly marks a shift in strategy from opening standalone stores at key locations to focusing on department store branches.

The reason Coway is establishing directly operated stores in department stores is to provide more customers with opportunities to experience its products. A Coway representative explained, "Large multi-purpose shopping centers attract high foot traffic and offer a convenient shopping environment, allowing us to reach a wide customer base not just from the immediate area but also from neighboring regions. The accessibility means anyone can browse comfortably and compare a variety of products." The ability for customers to not only try out products but also enjoy diverse shopping and cultural experiences is another reason Coway is expanding its presence in premium retail channels such as department stores and shopping malls.

Coway’s strategy to expand department store locations is closely tied to the growth of BEREX. Products such as mattresses and massage chairs from BEREX are often purchased after customers have tried them in person. Coway believes that department stores, where customers can experience and compare products-including those from competitors-are especially effective sales venues. Recently, demand for hands-on experiences has increased as Coway’s main rental products, such as water purifiers and air purifiers, have expanded their lineups and incorporated new technologies. Coway is designing its department store locations so that customers can try out not only BEREX products but also best-selling items such as ice water purifiers and air purifiers. For example, at the newly opened store in Lotte Department Store Guri Branch, customers can choose the optimal product based on size and ice usage from a segmented lineup including the Icon Ice Water Purifier Standard, Mini, and Original models.

This strategy has proven effective, with Coway recording a net increase of 160,000 domestic rental accounts in the second quarter. This is the highest quarterly net increase in rental accounts in the company’s history, representing a 101.5% growth compared to the same period last year. The company reported balanced sales growth across all major product categories. A Coway representative stated, "We will continue to provide differentiated offline shopping experiences tailored to customers’ lifestyles and consistently expand our points of contact with customers."

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