Basic necessities dominating online malls

Food, household and personal care products are emerging as the mainstay of online shopping malls, as the industry began expanding the categories of food and other necessities last year amid the economic downturn.

Apparel and fashion items have been ruling online shopping portals, but the gap with basic goods like food and personal care products has been quickly narrowing since 2007, industry sources said yesterday.

According to G Market, the discount online mall (www.gmarket.co.kr), food items and household and personal care products accounted for 38.2 percent of all its sales transactions last year, representing a 4.2 percent jump compared to 2007.

Fashion items and miscellaneous goods made up 31.3 percent in 2007 but fell to 28.3 percent last year, G Market said. It noted that fashion items and miscellaneous goods accounted for 41 percent, or 2.3 trillion won, of the total sales transactions it registered in 2006.

Sales of computers and other electronics items, which showed the upper hand during the onset of the online shopping mall industry, made up 30.5 percent in 2008, a 2.4 percent contraction from 2007.

Auction (www.auction.co.kr), another popular online shopping site, said sales of food, household and personal care items have also been increasing rapidly. It said food sales transactions surged 48 percent in 2008 compared to a year ago, while household and personal care items expanded 37 percent.

By category, sales of rice jumped 73 percent, bathroom tissue by 108 percent, detergent 320 percent, drinking water and beverages by 260 percent, and instant noodles and canned meat and fish by 190 percent.

Industry experts attribute the rising popularity of necessity shopping online to a growing sense of trust for cyber malls, along with accessibility for bargains and convenience.

By Yoo Soh-jung



(sohjung@heraldm.com)