"From Home Shopping to Live Broadcasts" Hotel Industry Diversifies Sales Channels

Seoul Hotel Room Occupancy Rate in the 30% Range Due to COVID-19 Impact
Room Sales Through Various Marketing, Utilizing Home Shopping and Live Broadcasts

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-sun] The hotel industry has started selling rooms using various sales channels. Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the occupancy rate of major hotels in downtown Seoul has dropped to around 30%, prompting efforts to attract customers through diverse marketing strategies.

InterContinental Seoul COEX announced on the 25th that it will offer exclusive special prices for rooms through a GS Shop home shopping broadcast at 6:25 PM on the 27th. The hotel explained, "InterContinental Seoul COEX, which was the first 5-star hotel in downtown Seoul to conduct home shopping sales last May, decided to hold a second sale due to numerous customer requests for resale," adding, "Guests can freely choose their stay dates from September 29 to January 31 of next year."

Through this broadcast, a Superior Room for one night with breakfast for two will be offered at 159,000 KRW on weekdays (Sunday to Thursday) and 209,000 KRW on weekends (Friday to Saturday). These prices include taxes and service charges. Customers who book through the GS Shop special offer will receive a 20% discount at the hotel’s restaurants and bars during their stay, a late checkout at 2 PM on weekdays only, and discounts at COEX Aquarium, Parnas Mall, and Starfield COEX Mall.

Lotte Hotel sold its autumn room package "Autumn On" via live commerce. The package was available at five Lotte Hotel branches (Seoul, World, Ulsan, Jeju, Busan), seven Lotte City Hotel branches (Mapo, Gimpo Airport, Jeju, Daejeon, Guro, Myeongdong, Ulsan), and three L7 Hotel branches (Myeongdong, Hongdae, Gangnam). A Lotte Hotel official stated, "As domestic customers who cannot travel abroad focus their travel demand on hotels and the usage rate among the millennial generation increases, we started live commerce sales as part of our strategy to diversify sales channels," adding, "We plan to provide a convenient and contactless shopping environment by communicating with customers in real time."

To attract customers, 'day-use' products were also introduced. Millennium Hilton launched a ‘Day Use’ product allowing room use from 9 AM to 6 PM. Glad Hotel is selling the package ‘Commuting to the Hotel,’ which allows check-in at 8 AM and check-out at 7 PM. It provides coffee, snacks, and other refreshments. The ‘Workcation’ package at The Escape Hotel is also available between 8 AM and 8 PM.