SEOUL, March 4 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has imposed a hefty fine on Dunlop Sports Korea for restricting retailers from offering discounts on its golf clubs, a move deemed an illegal restraint of competition. The FTC announced on Monday that Dunlop Sports Korea would face a 1.865 billion won ($1.29 [...]
SEOUL, March 4 (Korea Bizwire) — Homeplus Co., a discount store chain in South Korea, said Tuesday it has filed for corporate rehabilitation with a Seoul court after its credit rating declined amid liquidity worries. Homeplus filed for the court-led rehabilitation program with the Seoul Bankruptcy Court after its corporate credit rating plunged last week. [...]
SEOUL, March 3 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s e-commerce market is entering a new phase of competition as major players escalate their efforts to enhance delivery services, aiming to challenge Coupang’s dominance in logistics. With next-day delivery now an industry standard, retailers are racing to expand same-day shipping to differentiate themselves and meet rising consumer [...]
SEOUL, March 3 (Korea Bizwire) — The financial burden of food expenses for South Korea’s lowest-income households has skyrocketed over the past five years, growing at a significantly faster rate than for higher-income groups. New data reveals that the bottom 20% of earners saw their monthly food expenditures rise by nearly 40%, far outpacing the [...]
SEOUL, March 3 (Korea Bizwire) — Once a haven for budget-conscious shoppers and vintage fashion enthusiasts, South Korea’s secondhand clothing markets are now feeling the strain of high inflation and shifting consumer habits. Vendors at Dongmyo Flea Market, one of Seoul’s most famous thrift-shopping destinations, report a sharp drop in sales, with some saying business [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Lotte Shopping Co., an affiliate of South Korean retail giant Lotte Group, said Friday it has adopted the Taiwan LINE Pay settlement system at its discount store chain to woo Taiwanese travelers. Lotte Shopping formed a partnership with LINE Pay Taiwan Ltd. to introduce the LINE Pay system at [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 27 (Korea Bizwire) — Despite a sluggish consumer economy, Coupang Inc. achieved a major milestone in 2024, surpassing 41 trillion won (approximately $29 billion) in annual revenue. The e-commerce giant, founded in 2010 with just 3 billion won ($2.1 million) in capital, has cemented its position as South Korea’s dominant online retailer. Coupang’s success [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang, Inc. said Wednesday its sales exceeded 40 trillion won (US$27.9 billion) for the first time last year on robust sales in the “new growth” segment. Sales jumped 29 percent to a record 41.29 trillion won in 2024 from 31.82 trillion won a year earlier, [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — In a move to ease burdensome regulations, the South Korean government has approved guidelines allowing bakeries to provide complimentary birthday candles with cake purchases, addressing a peculiar regulatory oversight that had technically criminalized the common practice. Until now, birthday candles were classified as “household chemical products,” making their distribution — [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — Once a popular and low-barrier entry point for entrepreneurs, South Korea’s café industry is now facing an intense survival challenge due to market oversaturation, rising costs, and regulatory pressures. Despite the industry’s rapid expansion, data shows an alarming rate of closures. According to Statistics Korea, as of 2022, the number [...]