Expansion of Grocery Store Size
Massive Attraction of Specialty Stores and Tenants
Creation of Cultural Spaces such as Landers Plaza
Emart announced on the 30th that it will reopen the Yeonsu branch as a mall-type futuristic large-scale supermarket.
The Yeonsu branch compressed its existing 12,561㎡ (3,800 pyeong) store to 5,289㎡ (1,600 pyeong) and created The Town Mall with an area of 11,570㎡ (3,500 pyeong), attracting a large number of specialty stores and tenants. Through this innovation, the Yeonsu branch changed its composition from 70% Emart and 30% tenants to 30% Emart and 70% tenants after the renovation.
The grocery store evolved from an experiential and information-providing offline store, which is a competitive advantage, to the next grocery store that contains overwhelming scale and diversity. The grocery store, which was previously 3,867㎡ (1,170 pyeong), was expanded to 4,297㎡ (1,300 pyeong). The expanded store is filled with fresh foods where freshness can be vividly experienced, premium ready-to-eat foods (deli) that satisfy the five senses, and processed foods curated from the customer's perspective. In particular, an indoor smart farm that can grow fresh vegetables regardless of the season was installed first. In collaboration with the smart farm company N.Thing, four types of vegetables are grown and sold directly in the store space.
In the livestock section, the longest 30m showcase among Emart stores is introduced. It handles various livestock breeds that are hard to find in the market, such as Jeju Black Pork, Duroc, Spotted Pig, Australian high-marbled Wagyu, and Hwaseok Hanwoo. It is also equipped with a dedicated aging showcase to sell products such as sirloin, tomahawk, and T-bone. The seafood section operates signature bluefin tuna and Yoksido fresh bluefin tuna (once a month), and has created an upgraded order-made space where tuna is directly dismantled in the store every weekend and cut into the desired form for customers.
The deli store sells Yeonsu branch specialty products such as domestic low-sugar red bean paste bread and stone-milled seed bread at the premium bakery Boulangerie. A sensory satisfaction corner where you can enjoy Neapolitan pizza baked in a brick oven and fresh salads was also created. The Osak Bapsang store, which sells about 40 types of ready-to-eat side dishes, was also introduced. For the first time, robot-fried chicken fried directly by a robot is introduced.
At the store entrance and on the second floor, ‘Jjin Matjip’ food and beverage (F&B) and lifestyle and cultural tenants that contain ‘emotion and enjoyment’ are located. Reflecting the fact that the Yeonsu branch is located in a core commercial area within a 5km radius with a high proportion of families in their 30s and 40s with children under 9 years old, it attracted 82 tenants including 25 F&B stores, 3 entertainment venues, 22 fashion stores, 14 lifestyle stores, and 18 customer convenience facilities. This is the second-largest number following the 92 tenants at Emart Town Wolgye branch.
A cultural space that people of all ages can enjoy was also created. Landers Square on the first floor was created by SSG Landers, a professional baseball team of Shinsegae Group based in Incheon, to repay the love of Incheon fans. The 165㎡ (50 pyeong) space on the first floor, which was previously used as an event hall, was remodeled to reproduce the player locker room of Incheon Landers Field baseball stadium. On the second floor, Bounce, the nation’s first trampoline theme park, opened for the first time in the Incheon commercial area with a size of 760㎡ (230 pyeong) under the new name Bounce Children’s Park.
Jung Hwansung, the manager of Emart Yeonsu branch, said, “With this renovation, we aimed to innovate the store into a place where customers want to stay by strengthening the grocery and experiential content, which are the strengths of offline large supermarkets,” adding, “It is significant in that it has evolved into a futuristic Emart where customers can not only shop but also eat, enjoy, and experience trendy culture.”
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