Pre-planning events from October... Emphasis also on in-house events
[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] Amid the high exchange rate trend known as the so-called ‘King Dollar,’ the e-commerce industry is increasingly concerned ahead of major overseas direct purchase events such as the US Black Friday. To offer products at prices before the exchange rate hike, the industry is holding pre-planned events a month earlier than the November Black Friday or focusing on company-specific events to spread the impact.
According to the industry on the 22nd, Lotte ON has been conducting overseas direct purchase events in advance since October. The 'Overseas Direct Purchase Sale Week' held this month showcases about 10,000 various overseas direct purchase products each week under different themes such as ‘Preparing for Autumn,’ ‘Direct Purchase On Day,’ and ‘New Product Specials.’ In fact, sales from the 1st to the 17th, when the event was held, increased by about 30% compared to the same period last year. A Lotte ON official said, "It is a meaningful performance that direct purchase sales increased compared to last year despite the high exchange rate." They also plan to focus on the entire Lotte distribution group’s events and will participate in ‘Lottky Day,’ an integrated marketing event of eight affiliates, starting from the 24th.
11st is also putting effort into pre-planning and company-specific events. On the previous day, 11st collaborated with the imported toy specialist company ‘Navita World’ to hold an event selling overseas toys at half price. They showcased a total of about 400 popular products from overseas brands well-known in Korea, such as the heavy equipment and special vehicle toy brand ‘Bruder’ and the German premium figure brand ‘Schleich.’
Since they are also partnering with Amazon, they held a 'Pre-Black Friday' event ahead of Black Friday. They continuously collaborated with Amazon to prepare special price products and increased discount rates through live broadcasts. Due to this planning, 620,000 viewers tuned in to the live broadcast on the first day of the event. A 11st official said, “The pre-planned Black Friday event saw increases in both transaction amounts and purchasing customers compared to the monthly Amazon events,” adding, “The atmosphere is relatively good despite the high exchange rate environment.”
Gmarket and Auction plan to focus first on targeting large domestic demand with the company-wide large-scale event ‘Big Smile Day’ next month, and then prepare for overseas direct purchases. Currently, they are conducting sales customer support events to attract sellers, and the Black Friday event is in the planning stage, including discount rate adjustments. A Gmarket and Auction official said, “We are currently encouraging participation from overseas direct purchase platforms and tenant sellers, and internally coordinating the discount rates through coupons and deals.”
An industry insider said, “Worried that the high exchange rate might dampen the direct purchase atmosphere, the industry is actively engaging in discount events and pre-planning.”
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