Naju-si Records 'Highest Sales' at Chuseok Gift Special Sale Event

Naju Local Food Direct Store Bitgaram Branch (above), Geumnam Branch (below) Photo by Jeonnam Naju City Provided

[Naju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yukbong] Naju City, Jeollanam-do (Mayor Kang In-gyu) announced on the 28th that the special local food gift sale event held at two direct sales stores, Bitgaram and Geumnamjeom, from the 10th to the 20th ahead of the Chuseok golden holiday, was successfully concluded.

During this period, the sales at the two direct sales stores increased by about 30% in daily average sales, totaling approximately 370 million KRW.

In particular, Bitgaram store recorded sales exceeding 50 million KRW in a single day on the 13th, during the peak of the special sale event, setting a new record for the highest daily sales.

This year, the average daily sales at Bitgaram direct sales store is about 12 million KRW, showing a growth of about three times compared to the sales at its opening in 2015.

Since surpassing cumulative sales of 10 billion KRW in July 2019, total sales have now exceeded 19 billion KRW, approaching the 20 billion KRW milestone.

The number of registered consumer members, based on trust in food quality, is also steadily increasing.

Four and a half years after opening, the number of members surpassed 10,000 in the first half of 2020, and as of this month, 11,917 consumer members are registered.

Including registered members, the average daily visitors number 633, and according to statistical system data, over 1 million people have visited the direct sales stores so far.

Despite the increase in non-face-to-face consumption demand due to COVID-19, the biggest reason for the steady growth in consumption of Naju local food is consumers' trust in healthy food.

The local food direct sales stores handle only local agricultural products with known producers, without industrial or imported products, building strong trust with citizens.

For agricultural products where freshness is vital, leafy vegetables are displayed for one day, root vegetables for two days, and fruit vegetables for three days, with strict management of display periods.

Additionally, since 2016, monthly local food agricultural product safety (residual pesticide) inspections have been conducted to ensure safe food reaches consumers' tables.

Mayor Kang In-gyu said, “Despite difficulties caused by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, I thank the citizens who trust and empathize with the value of coexistence pursued by Naju local food,” and added, “We will make further efforts to increase farmers' income through the revitalization of local food.”

Naju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yukbong bong2910@asiae.co.kr