Most Popular
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Qoo10 liquidity crisis sparks massive complaints, fears of wider damage
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Yoon urges municipalities to embrace foreigners
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What is happening at Hybe?
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S. Korea to consent to Japan's Sado mines gaining World Heritage status: official
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Korea unveils tax reform bill to spur economy
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Actor’s excessive airport security sparks probe into human rights violations
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Actor Yoo Ah-in accused of sexual attack
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Man who let his father die due to financial difficulties to be released on parole
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S. Korea, China shifting from tensions to cooperation: Seoul
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LG Electronics achieves record earnings in Q2
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Korean retailers jump into NFT craze
Nonfungible tokens, once monopolized by cryptocurrency exchanges and auction houses, are creeping into the retail industry, where top players are desperate to seek a new growth engine in a quickly saturating market. NFTs are digital tokens of physical or digital assets, mostly of music or art, that guarantee ownership through blockchain technology. Korean retail channels are also set to expand their footing into the burgeoning NFT business by selling art and fashion items. CJ Olive Networks
Jan. 25, 2022
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Korea’s beer imports drop to all-time low
South Korea’s imports of beer recorded an all-time low last year, amid a nationwide boycott of Japanese beer and other products, data showed Monday. According to the Korea Customs Service, imports of beer decreased by 1.7 percent on-year to $223.1 million last year. The figure surpassed the record-low imports of $181.5 million in 2016. The list of major beer import countries last year includes the Netherlands, followed by China, Belgium, Poland, Ireland, Germany and the Czech Republic.
Jan. 24, 2022
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7-Eleven to provide AI data for potential franchise owners
The convenience store chain 7-Eleven of Korea’s retail giant Lotte Group said Friday it joined hands with Oasis Business, startup solution platform, to develop an Artificial Intelligence solution to support those who wish to start the franchise business. Based on the partnership, the store chain plans to provide more objective data of the commercial area around the new franchise and accurate sales projections. The AI-analyzed data includes the number of the floating population, sales fig
Jan. 21, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Pernod Ricard Korea looks to infuse Korean culture into drinking
As the COVID-19 pandemic forced pubs and bars to close early and limited private gatherings, more people have been drinking at home. Frantz Hotton, CEO of global wine and spirits company Pernod Ricard Group’s Korean affiliate, saw a silver lining in the virus-driven trend. “Our sales and marketing teams have made great efforts to respond well to the growing needs of off-trade market and caught up rapidly to grab opportunities in line with new drinking patterns,” Hotton said i
Jan. 20, 2022
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Lotte Group steps closer to Ministop Korea acquisition
Korea’s retail giant Lotte Group is highly likely to be picked as a preferred bidder to acquire the nation’s fifth-largest convenience store chain Ministop Korea, according to industry sources Wednesday. Lotte reportedly offered the highest bidding price -- 300 billion won ($251.5 million) -- possibly leaving out its crosstown rival Shinsegae Group in the heated race. “Since Lotte has outbid other contenders, there’s a 99.9 percent chance of Lotte becoming the prefer
Jan. 19, 2022
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Korea’s kimchi exports soar to all-time high
South Korea’s exports of kimchi recorded an all-time high last year, reaching a trade surplus for the first time in 12 years, data showed Monday. Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish made of spicy sauce and fermented cabbage. According to the Korea Customs Service, exports of kimchi surged by 10.7 percent on-year to $159.9 million last year. The figure surpassed the record-high exports of $144.5 million in 2020. More than half of last year’s exports went to Japan, followed by
Jan. 17, 2022
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Louis Vuitton to shut downtown duty-free shops in Korea
French luxury brand Louis Vuitton is closing shops at all downtown duty-free stores in South Korea by March 2023. Having stopped running its store at Lotte Duty Free Jeju in December, Louis Vuitton will close three more -- at the Shilla Duty Free in Jeju, Lotte Duty Free in Busan and Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, Seoul -- in March, according to UK travel retail media outlet Moodie Davitt Report. Louis Vuitton also plans to pull out from the three remaining downtown duty-free stores -- Lotte Du
Jan. 17, 2022
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Lotte Hotel to launch boutique hotel in Chicago next year
Lotte Hotel, the hotel chain owned by Korea’s retail giant Lotte Group, said Monday that it will open a new hotel in Chicago next year, the first overseas launch under its lifestyle boutique hotel brand L7. Lotte said it completed an acquisition of Kimpton Hotel Monaco Chicago for 42.8 billion won ($35.9 million) on Friday (US time) in a joint investment with the state-run Korea Overseas Infrastructure Development Corp. The 13-story hotel with 191 rooms is expected to be refurbished int
Jan. 17, 2022
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Government to deploy 10,000 couriers amid CJ strike
Amid the prolonged strike of unionized delivery workers of CJ Logistics, the logistics unit of Korea’s conglomerate CJ Group, government is planning to deploy additional workers to prepare for a delivery surge in the upcoming New Year’s holiday. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, starting Monday, it will deploy around 10,000 delivery workers to the field from Jan. 17 to Feb. 12. Following the scheme, the ministry aims to offset the delivery shortage sp
Jan. 16, 2022
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Coupang launches Japan’s Nitori furniture in Korea
South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang said Wednesday it has exclusively launched the product lines of Nitori, Japan’s largest furniture and household goods brand. According to the company, Coupang will directly import Nitori products so that customers in Korea can conveniently purchase the brand’s items. Celebrating the launch, Coupang presents a limited-time offer from Wednesday to Friday. Any Coupang customer can receive four types of discount coupons -- discounts of 3,000 won ($
Jan. 12, 2022
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Digital platforms for secondhand trading emerge as new retail unicorns
Market valuation estimates of local digital platforms that promote individual trading of secondhand products have been on the rise with traditional retailers and even banks injecting large investments in hopes of them becoming the next Coupang and Market Kurly. Some market insiders say that valuation of Danggeun Market, the nation’s biggest secondhand trading app by transaction volume, is estimated at 3 trillion won ($2.5 billion). The figure, though based on mere estimation, surpasses
Jan. 11, 2022
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Shinsegae shares plunge on vice chief’s anti-communist remarks
Retail giant Shinsegae Group saw its shares plunge on Monday as a controversial social media post from the group’s heir and Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin sparked investor jitters. The company’s stocks shed 6.8 percent to close at 233,000 won ($196.23) Monday against the benchmark KOSPI’s 0.95 percent decline. The plunge in stock value comes after Chung made several politically charged remarks in recent months criticizing communism alongside pictures of Chinese President Xi Ji
Jan. 10, 2022
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Starbucks Korea to raise price of Americano
Starbucks Korea, the nation’s No. 1 specialty coffee chain, said Wednesday it is considering bumping up the price for a cup of Americano in almost eight years due to the price surge in coffee beans imported from overseas. “Even when other franchise coffee shops have increased their coffee prices, we have fixed our price rate. It was bearable back then, but since COVID-19, the price of coffee beans and other materials such as syrups have begun to soar just too much,” an offici
Jan. 6, 2022
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CJ CheilJedang sets up global unit for overseas business
CJ CheilJedang, a food manufacturer under Korea’s CJ Group, said Tuesday it will reorganize its business units and refine global market strategies in a bid to efficiently promote its Korean food products worldwide. According to the food giant, it plans to divide its headquarters business into global and regional food unit. Namely the Global Headquarter will take charge in promoting its food products such as dumpling, chicken, kimchi, Korean hot sauce and dried laver overseas. The region
Jan. 4, 2022
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SPC heir promoted as president
Paris Baguette operator SPC Group promoted its third-generation heir Hur Jin-soo as president of Paris Croissant, the group‘s de facto holding company, the firm announced Thursday. The recent promotion is in recognition of Hur’s contribution to raising Paris Baguette’s brand awareness in major foreign markets, explained SPC. He also led the bakery chain’s joint venture project in Indonesia and Cambodia this year. At its global branches, SPC appointed foreign executive
Dec. 30, 2021
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Shinsegae buys stake in Seoul Auction to explore art, NFTs
Shinsegae and Seoul Auction are teaming up to expand operations in arts, NFTs and metaverse fields, South Korea’s largest art auction house said Thursday. The department store operator will purchase 28 billion-won ($23.6 million) of new shares issued by Seoul Auction, according to a DART announcement posted by the two firms on Wednesday. When the acquisition is finalized on Jan. 6, Shinsegae will own a 4.82 percent stake in Seoul Auction. The firm is currently the largest art auc
Dec. 30, 2021
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Manufacturer to pay compensation for ‘toxic’ baby bathtubs
A local manufacturer and a distributor of a plastic baby bathtub that was previously recalled for containing high levels of toxic environmental hormones will have to pay compensation to thousands of customers. The Korea Consumer Agency said Wednesday it advised the baby tub’s manufacturer, Daehyeon Chemical, and its intermediate distributor, Kihyun Industries, to pay 50,000 won ($42) to each customer who used the product as compensation. While the tub was mostly sold at Daiso stores, t
Dec. 29, 2021
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[Best Brand] Coway’s new induction cooktop in high demand
Home appliances company Coway said its new induction cooktop is enjoying high demand thanks to its auto cooking function, as more consumers are choosing to cook at home rather than eat out amid the pandemic. The auto cooking function of Coway’s Noble Induction Freedom, launched in November, saves the trouble of watching and controlling the heat for pots and pans to keep the contents from burning or boiling over. When cooking rice in a pressure cooker, for example, the cooktop automatic
Dec. 28, 2021
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[Best Brand] aT, driver behind kimchi exports
Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) has been at the center of promoting kimchi overseas, expanding the fermented dish’s presence in the United States and increasing its global exports. Located in Naju, South Jeolla Province, the state-owned company overlooks the distribution and transaction of all agricultural goods produced in Korea. One of its recent efforts is promoting kimchi in the United States and abroad. The firm has been particularly upping its activities i
Dec. 28, 2021
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60% of locals say K-fried chicken ‘not Korean’: survey
Six out of 10 Koreans do not think fried chicken is Korean food, or hansik, according to a survey from a public institution released Monday. The results come from a survey conducted by the Korea Food Promotion Institution in October on 1,500 Korean nationals aged between 19 to 69. Respondents were shown 30 dishes commonly enjoyed by locals and asked whether they thought the dish was “Korean” or not. Only 36.1 percent of respondents answered Korean style fried chicken -- without
Dec. 27, 2021