The latest addition by Lotte Mart, one of South Korea’s biggest retail franchises, to establish individual sections for overseas visitors in some of its outlets. This is a unique strategy that can improve international clients’ perception of shopping and explore the increasing tourism industry in South Korea.
New shopping zones – which will be launched in areas of Lotte Mart shops interesting for foreign tourists – will be filled with products popular among foreigners. Some of such products include Korean cosmetics, the local traditional and snacks and processed foods, electronics goods and locally made souvenirs. These areas will be specially constructed to accommodate the English and other international visitors with Korean written communications or translations of product information to English.
These particular sections for Lotte Mart is set in view of the continuous rise of the international tourists visiting South Korea, which has quickly gained a strong trajectory after the relaxation of the COVID-19 travel ban. The tourist market is also acknowledged as a vast growth opportunity for the company, and the company views the differentiation from other retail competitors in the market.
Among the characteristic of these new shopping zones will be the provision of tax free shopping services. This way, foreign visitors should be able to do their tax refund documents at the same location and this should also help many tourist who don’t fully understand how they can get their refunds on shops that offer tax free shopping. This is expected to be one of the key attractions to International consumers interested in shopping and also seeking to get value for their money during their shopping trip to South Korea.
The special zones will also consist of aspects of Korean culture and technology together with the product selection and tax-free services. Informational kiosks will teach customers about history and importance of Korean goods, and with AR manners customer will be able to ‘test cosmetics or ‘see’ electronics at their own homes.
The move is in line with change in consumer behavior as well as market trends that Lotte Mart seeks to address. With domestic consumptions growth rate slowing down the company has shifted focus to other sectors for customer base and also anther form of revenue. The concern for foreign visitors coincides with South Korean government policies aimed at developing tourism and increasing the export of South Korean culture.
Market specialists have welcomed the recent decision made by Lotte Mart because it highlights previously uncovered opportunities for offering appealing shopping environments outside of just the standard duty-free segment for tourists. Through placement in many of these locations, Lotte Mart is now making it convenient for travelers to find many Korean items of their desire throughout their trip instead of simply having to do shopping in the airport or tourist spots which has been the tradition.
The company has also presented an intention of collaborating with travel agents and hotels in order to market such new shopping mall areas to the global community. Sales promotions and sporting activities will be arranged in accord with dominant days and functions to complement these areas for overseas customers.
The action of Lotte Mart is anticipated to have a multiplier effect on the economy, greatly affecting not only the retail chain, but also many SMEs that are involved with the supply of products to Lotte Mart. This would not only help these companies gain access to consumers in global markets, but make the special shopping zones instrumental in increasing exports and promoting Korean brands.
The opening of these specialised areas will start at the flagship stores in Seoul, Busan and Jeju Island with further expansion prepare depending on the situation of these initial stores. Lotte Mart has realized that its employees serving international customers in these zones need to be trained appropriately as far as language and cultural understanding is concerned.
As the competition in Indonesia retail industry progresses, more attention to this aspect of foreign visitor engagement might act as a precedent in the retail market. That is why other retailers are likely to observe and possibly emulate the latter strategy aimed at the captive tourist audience.
This project’s success may also expand to other sectors in South Korea including retail and tourism, ultimately pushing more business entities and government to offer better services to consumers in attempts to position the country even more strongly in the shopping world. In view of the development of Korea as an international tourist destination, the pilot projects in Lotte Mart stores, including special zones for shoppers, will undoubtedly help to create a favourable image of the country in the eyes of the European purchasers.
