Gyeongbuk Province's Agricultural Specialty Products Shopping Mall 'Saiseo' Sees 60% Sales Increase Compared to Last Year... Surpasses 6 Billion Won

Integration of 7 City and County Agricultural Specialty Product Shopping Malls... Establishment of a Metropolitan Platform

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Jae-ho] Gyeongbuk Province announced on the 21st that the sales of 'Saiseo,' an online shopping mall for agricultural specialty products, reached 5.96 billion KRW as of the end of March, which is 60% higher than the same month last year (3.72 billion KRW).

The number of vendors and products listed on 'Saiseo' are 136 and 6,849 respectively, with the number of members reaching 39,783. Compared to the end of last year, the number of listed products increased by 39%, and new members increased by 17%.

Gyeongbuk Province explained that this is the result of adapting to the online and contactless distribution structure due to the impact of COVID-19, including the development of a mobile app to enhance consumer accessibility since its official opening in April 2007, the opening of special sections such as the premium agricultural products pavilion, expansion of affiliated malls with large retailers, and various events.

Building on this momentum, Gyeongbuk Province plans to expand sales channels for agricultural specialty products through integrated marketing linked with 'Saiseo' to overcome the limitations of small-scale shopping malls operated by cities and counties.

Starting with seven cities and counties including Gyeongju City, by 2023, they plan to integrate 'Saiseo' with city and county shopping malls step-by-step to establish a provincial-level wide-area platform and conduct large-scale promotions in connection with affiliated malls such as Kakao and Naver.

Kim Jong-su, Director of the Agriculture, Livestock and Distribution Bureau, emphasized, "We will continue to support farmers who are struggling to sell agricultural products due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic so that sales through the 'Saiseo Mall' can be expanded."