As Black Friday kicked off the Christmas shopping season in the U.S., consumers in South Korea joined the retail frenzy through online stores.

A growing number of consumers here recognize and show interest in Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the U.S. that kicks off a sale season that lasts until January.

A survey of 1,400 consumers by local online shopping mall 11street found that 40 percent of respondents had purchased products in previous years’ Black Friday sales.

Some consumers directly order clothes, which are highly priced here compared to their countries of origin, from the official websites of foreign brands or via overseas delivery agencies.

Yim Hyun-joo, a 32-year-old office worker, plans to buy clothes for her baby through an overseas purchase and delivery website next week.

“Clothes from Polo and Gap are almost one-third cheaper than at department stores here. I start buying goods little by little from the end of November,” she said.

Overseas purchase and delivery agency Malltail, announced shipment delays for large TVs, as it received some 1,500 orders in the week Black Friday sales started.

Black Friday online sales in Korea surged especially last year when the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement came into effect and the won-U.S. dollar exchange rate bottomed out.

Local retail firms including e-commerce websites are holding sale events to lure customers seeking bargains on foreign brands.

Starting from Nov. 25, online shopping malls such as Auction and 11street began to offer discounts on U.S. labels Abercrombie & Fitch and Marc Jacobs.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)