Coway Gallery Establishes Nationwide Network... Accelerates Store Expansion with New Corporation

Coway has opened a directly operated store, the 'Coway Gallery,' in Jeju, where customers can experience products firsthand. With the opening of direct stores in Jeju, following Gangwon?a region Coway had not previously entered?earlier this year, Coway has now established a nationwide network of experiential stores. Coway plans to continue its strategy of expanding experiential stores by establishing Coway Gallery as a separate corporation.

On May 30, Coway announced that it had opened the Coway Gallery, a direct brand experience and sales store, in Jeju City, following Shinsegae Department Store Times Square and Lotte Department Store Cheongnyangni in Seoul earlier this month. This brings the number of large direct stores opened this month alone to three. On May 2 and 3, Coway opened the Shinsegae Times Square and Lotte Cheongnyangni direct stores, increasing the number of Coway Galleries in Seoul to seven. On May 16, the first store in Jeju opened in Nohyeong-dong, Jeju City, bringing the total number of Coway's directly operated offline stores nationwide to 26. In particular, with the opening of the Jeju direct store, Coway now has stores in every regional hub, making it easy for customers anywhere in the country to experience Coway products.

Coway Gallery Cheongju Direct Store, which Coway opened last month. Coway

원본보기 아이콘

Coway first opened an experiential offline store in Gangnam at the end of 2021. Since then, it added two stores in 2022, seven in 2023, and nine more last year. In less than five months this year, Coway has already opened seven new stores. The expansion of experiential stores is a strategy focused on growing Coway's sleep and healing care brand, 'BEREX.' Many customers prefer to try BEREX products such as mattresses and massage chairs by lying down or sitting on them before making a purchase. Coway determined that offline stores where customers can both experience and purchase products are effective for sales. A Coway representative stated, "Because products like BEREX require firsthand experience before purchase, we are expanding the galleries to provide more opportunities for customers to try them out."

Coway has also aimed for synergy by allowing customers to try out best-selling products such as ice water purifiers and air purifiers in addition to BEREX products. This strategy has proven effective, with Coway's domestic rental account net increase in the first quarter rising by 63.0% year-on-year to 103,000 units. Coway explained that robust sales continued across major product categories, including air purifiers, water purifiers, bidets, as well as BEREX mattresses and massage chairs.

Coway's strategy to expand offline experiential stores is expected to accelerate this year. The company has established the Coway Gallery as a separate corporation in the first quarter and has put in place systems to continually expand and efficiently manage offline stores. The newly established Coway Gallery is a subsidiary dedicated to operating offline stores and handling sales on behalf of Coway. A Coway representative stated, "We will continue to expand experiential stores so that customers can encounter Coway products even closer to their daily lives."

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.