SEOUL, Oct. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — Traditional markets with stores run by E-Mart Inc., the country’s largest discount chain operator, have been witnessing an increase in the number of customers, signaling the possibility of the co-prosperity of giant retailers and mom-and-pop shops, industry sources said Tuesday. E-Mart operates stores dedicated to selling its private-label No [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s large retailers posted solid sales ahead and during this year’s Chuseok holiday helped by all out marketing efforts to attract customers, industry sources said Monday. Data provided by local retailers showed double digit growth by some companies as the country celebrated the longest holiday in decades. Chuseok, [...]
ANDONG, Oct. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — The city of Andong is pushing for the legalization of hemp (marijuana) for medical use. It is unprecedented for a local government to push for legalization, since hemp has long been designated as an illegal drug. Andong has many places that openly cultivate hemp because it is used as [...]
SEJONG, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Purchases made through mobile devices in South Korea continued to break new records last month as a growing number of people spend more time with their handsets, government data showed Friday. Mobile transactions through smartphones and tablets reached an all-time high of 4.04 trillion won (US$3.5 billion) in August, [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea has postponed the opening of new duty-free shops by one year amid a diplomatic row between Seoul and Beijing over a missile defense system, industry sources said Friday. In December last year, the Korea Customs Service (KCS) announced six new operators of duty-free shops in Seoul and two provincial cities, giving them 12 months to prepare to open their shops. The KCS [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The local unit of global furniture giant IKEA said Friday it will launch an augmented reality (AR) technology-based mobile application next week to provide a better chance for customers to shop for its products, with its second outlet set to open in October. IKEA Place, where people can virtually [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Sanitary pads pose no health risks to women, health authorities said Thursday, disclosing the result of their inspection of all products sold on the market. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said it has examined a total of 676 sanitary pads manufactured or imported over the past three [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Korea Bizwire) – When it comes to overseas direct purchasing (ODC), there is too much coming in and not enough coming out, leaving yearly trade deficits of over 1 trillion won. According to the Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee of the central government, a report by the Korea Customs Service revealed [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 27 (Korea Bizwire) – A new report has claimed shopping centers could push out local commercial districts and drive down the gross regional product of neighborhoods. Findings from the new study by researcher Jung Soo-jung at the Korea Small Business Institute (KOSBI) released on Wednesday show that large-scale shopping centers often thought to boost [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 27 (Korea Bizwire) – International consumer goods giant Unilever has agreed to acquire South Korean cosmetics firm Carver Korea for around three trillion won, marking the largest merger and acquisition deal in the South Korean cosmetics industry to date. According to industry sources and the international media on Monday, Unilever Global is set to [...]