The Work-Life Balance Shift in e-Shopping... The Psychology Behind Shopping in Bed at 11 PM

Tired Monday Night... Lying in Bed Making Payments
Gmarket's Daily Cosmetics Sales Share at 11 PM is 6.5%
Similar Trends in Home Shopping Mobile Apps Beyond E-commerce

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] "Since the implementation of the 52-hour workweek system, working hours have shortened, so I feel a lot more self-conscious about shopping like I used to because I need to focus on work. There is also a unique pleasure in online shopping enjoyed at home after work." Kim Su-jeong (pseudonym), a woman in her 20s, buys cosmetics as a gift for herself after a tiring Monday. She is highly satisfied because she doesn't have to carry heavy items and delivery takes only 1-2 days. There is also the unique pleasure of online shopping enjoyed from the comfort of her bed.

As the 'Work-Life Balance (WLB)' culture, which encourages focused work and early leaving, has settled in society, online shopping culture has also changed. More people now visit online shopping malls after work before going to bed, rather than browsing during the afternoon while waiting to leave work. This trend is especially evident in cosmetics home shopping as well.

According to eBay Korea on the 18th, in 2019, the hourly sales share of cosmetics on Gmarket was highest between 11 PM and 12 AM at 6.5%. The next highest was between 10 PM and 11 PM, followed by 11 AM to 12 PM, 2 PM to 3 PM, and 3 PM to 4 PM.

With the establishment of domestic WLB culture, the culture of enjoying online shopping before leaving work is gradually disappearing. This contrasts with 2018, when the sales share at 3 PM was the highest at 6.3%. The day with the highest cosmetics sales share was Monday, a weekday, accounting for 17.6%. The average sales share on weekdays (15.5%) also surpassed that of weekends (11.2%).

A similar trend is observed in the home shopping industry, where the mobile share is increasing, especially among young female consumers in their 20s and 30s. Last year, Lotte Home Shopping's beauty mobile orders showed the highest growth rate between midnight and 2 AM, increasing by 49% compared to the previous year. The next highest growth was between 2 PM and 5 PM, up 37% year-on-year. When the 'Est?e Lauder Foundation' sales broadcast was recently conducted on KakaoTV, the number of viewers exceeded 100,000, resulting in more than double the usual orders.

The e-commerce industry explains that this trend is widely observed not only in beauty but across online shopping in general. In fact, 11st named 11 PM as the golden shopping hour for the entire last year. The number of transactions at 11 PM was the highest, reaching 1.6 times the average hourly order volume. The next busiest times were 10 PM, 11 AM, and 9 PM, respectively.

An eBay Korea official explained, "As flexible work and WLB culture spread, people tend to take care of personal matters during working hours and immediately after leaving work, and instead, shopping patterns have shifted to late-night hours before going to bed." A Lotte Home Shopping official also said, "Mobile beauty orders have increased after 6 PM, after work," adding, "We plan to schedule various beauty products during these time slots."