Department Stores Return to Autumn Regular Sales... Fashion and Living 'Ssangduma' (Comprehensive)

FW New Fashion Items
'Corona Special' Living Product Line as Main
Farmers' Win-Win Partnership...Non-Face-to-Face Social Distancing Too

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] The dull summer monsoon has ended, and the department store autumn regular sale season has returned. This year, due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), the focus was placed not only on the main product category of fashion but also on special exhibitions for living and interior. Efforts by department stores to disperse customers as part of social distancing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are also noticeable.

Lotte Department Store Extends Sale by One More Week

Lotte Department Store will hold the ‘Autumn Regular Sale’ under the theme of ‘17-day Nationwide Shopping Race’ from the 25th of this month to the 11th of next month. Overlapping with the Chuseok holiday, the sale is extended by one week compared to last year to disperse shopping customers and provide more diverse benefits and events to stimulate consumption. About 700 brands are participating in this sale, offering 10-30% discounts on this year’s fall/winter (FW) new products across all product categories, and up to 70% discounts on clearance product exhibitions.

This year, the event for living product categories such as home appliances, furniture, and kitchenware, which are showing sales growth due to the mega trend of ‘homeconomy,’ has been expanded. At all stores, Lotte Department Store buyers have selected ‘40 special discount items’ in the living product category, offering up to 70% off compared to the regular price. Representative products include the Downing Marino Sofa 3 types and Sealy Mattress 2 types at 50% off, Allergman Goose Comforter at 50% off, and Henckels 5-star Knife Set at 70% off.

Relay events for kitchenware are also held by store. At Jamsil Store (September 25?27), the Kitchen Tableware Gift Exhibition offers brands such as Fissler, Silit, and Le Creuset at up to 70% discount. At Yeongdeungpo Store (October 7?11) and Cheongnyangni Store (October 9?15), the Fissler Family Sale will be held, offering up to 60% off on displayed pots and pressure cookers, and up to 50% off on popular electric ranges such as induction and highlight for 100 customers. For customers purchasing home appliances by store and period, Lotte gift certificates worth 7.5% of the purchase amount will be given, and for kitchenware customers, up to 10% gift certificates will be provided.

Sports events suitable for the autumn outdoor activity season are also introduced. Notably, the main store will hold the ‘Lotte Golf Show’ for four days starting from the 25th, hosting a large-scale golf wear and equipment event. Popular club specials such as XXIO and Majesty will be discounted up to 65%, and popular golf apparel will be offered at up to 80% off through the Bogner uniform price event and Mizuno group exhibition.

As part of untact marketing, events using the Lotte Department Store app are also prepared, including daily and weekly relay coupon events and prize draws based on the number of purchase days during the sale period. Coupons offering Lotte gift certificates equivalent to 10% on weekends and 7% daily according to purchase amount will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Additionally, mobile gift certificates worth 10,000 KRW, AirPods Pro, Galaxy Z Flip 5G, and other prizes will be raffled based on the number of purchase days during the sale. In line with the non-face-to-face shopping trend, Lotte ON will offer up to 50% discounts on popular brands such as Nike, Adidas, and Guess from the 24th to October 4th. Additional exclusive coupons for participating brands will also be provided.

Hyundai Department Store Strengthens Untact Benefits Including Mobile Gifting

Hyundai Department Store announced on the 22nd that it will hold the ‘Autumn Regular Sale’ at 15 stores nationwide, including the Apgujeong Main Store, from the 25th of this month to the 11th of next month. About 300 brands including fashion, accessories, sports, and cosmetics will participate, offering autumn season new products at 10-30% lower than the initial selling price.

During this sale period, Hyundai Department Store will strengthen the mobile ‘Gift Service’ and provide shopping support funds to 8 million people. Plus Points are discount coupons that can be used like cash at Hyundai Department Store and can be downloaded from the H Point app during the sale period. Customers can use Plus Points to get discounts based on payment amounts when purchasing over 100,000 KRW during the event period. These can also be used for brand-specific discount events.

The ‘Joo·Money’ service, which allows customers to accumulate gift certificates directly as department store card points in stores without visiting the gift desk, will also be activated. This strengthens shopping benefits that customers can use whenever they want, preventing crowding at once. Meanwhile, the gift desk will be minimally operated for elderly customers and those unfamiliar with mobile devices.

Various discount events will be held at each store during the sale period. First, the Apgujeong Main Store will hold a ‘Men’s Golf Apparel Special Sale’ at the 5th-floor event hall from the 25th to the 27th, and from the 29th to the 6th of next month, an Allergman and Peter Reed Bedding Exhibition will be held at the basement 1st-floor event hall, offering clearance products at up to 40% off the initial selling price. The Trade Center Store will hold a ‘Men’s Imported & Contemporary Exhibition’ from the 9th to the 11th of next month, offering clearance products at 40% off, and the Pangyo Store will hold a ‘Home Interior Special Exhibition’ from the 5th to the 8th and a ‘Samsung Electronics Special Exhibition’ from the 9th to the 11th of next month, showcasing home appliance, furniture, and living brand products.

Galleria Department Store Offers Diverse Events from Autumn with Farmer Partnership

Galleria Department Store will hold its autumn regular sale from the 25th of this month to the 11th of next month. About 70 brands at each Galleria branch will participate, offering up to 50% discounts.

First, following the summer sale, Galleria will conduct ‘Farmer Partnership Autumn’ using local agricultural products. This is a good consumption event that purchases large quantities of products from farmers experiencing poor sales and provides them to customers at affordable prices. The positive response to the Farmer Partnership Summer event held in July has continued through the autumn regular sale.

Especially, by receiving special discount coupons available on a first-come, first-served basis through the Galleria application (app), customers can purchase seasonal representative agricultural products at even more discounted prices. This autumn sale purchased about 7.9 tons of seasonal agricultural products, an increase of 3.9 tons compared to the summer event. This quantity will be available at more affordable prices in two rounds on September 25 and October 9.

During the sale period, Galleria will offer various events and introduce new luxury brands. Under the theme ‘How to Use the Galleria App,’ customers who complete seven missions such as setting up electronic receipts and allowing push notifications will be entered into a draw to win G-Cash as a prize. On the last weekend of the sale, from October 9 to 11, as part of the ‘Light! Galleria’ social contribution campaign practicing the three core values of environmental protection, respect for life, and safety culture, reusable shopping bags will be given to customers who make purchases.

Meanwhile, at the luxury store located in Apgujeong-dong, the Italian luxury house brand ‘Valentino’ will hold a ‘V-Signature’ pop-up exhibition at the East 1st-floor luxury pop-up zone from September 18 to October 5. At Galleria Gwongyo, French luxury brand Saint Laurent and high-end luxury brand Dior will open new stores on September 18 and 23, respectively. Additionally, from September 18 to October 18, a pop-up store for the French luxury brand ‘Goyard’ will be held.