Nighttime Unmanned Stores Grow Quiet... LG Electronics Scales Down Operations

At 9:30 PM on Saturday the 10th, LG Electronics Best Shop Gangnam Main Store located on Dosan-daero in Seoul was quietly running home appliances such as washing machines and stylers without any staff or customers. During the unmanned store operating hours, there was only one customer group touring the place filled with LG Electronics home appliances from the 1st to the 5th floor.

LG Electronics, which opened the first unmanned store in the home appliance industry in 2021, has started flexible store operations this year by reducing the number of stores. On the 12th, LG Electronics announced that it is operating 17 unmanned night stores nationwide, opening the store doors from 9 PM to 11 PM without any staff. Including five Best Shop main stores in Seoul?Gangseo, Gangbuk, Gangdong, Gangnam, Seocho, and Geumcheon?as well as Namcheongju, Dalseo, Busan, Sangnam, Seogwangju, Suwon, Yangsan, Ulsan, Jeonju, Pyeongchon main stores, and Bupyeong-gu Office store, a total of 17 stores are operated without staff even at night.

In May 2021, when the non-face-to-face service trend surged due to the spread of COVID-19, LG Electronics opened the first unmanned store in Korea’s home appliance industry. Starting with 9 unmanned stores in May, the number quickly expanded to 19 within six months as word of mouth spread and customer contact points increased. The cumulative number of visitors in the first year reached about 6,000. LG Electronics increased the number of unmanned stores nationwide to 29 in the second half of last year.

However, the atmosphere has completely changed this year.

As the spread of COVID-19 halted and the endemic phase began, customers visiting unmanned stores rapidly decreased. Especially, the main customer base of unmanned stores, the 20-30s MZ generation, flocked to pop-up stores and other venues that maximize customer experience, causing the once popular unmanned stores to lose their appeal. Another downside is that unmanned stores lack staff to explain home appliances, making it difficult for customers to immediately obtain price and feature information about new products.

Accordingly, LG Electronics, which had planned to actively respond to changing customer trends by continuously expanding unmanned stores, shifted its unmanned store operation strategy from 'expansion' to 'flexible adjustment' and now only opens unmanned stores where operational efficiency can be maximized. Even if three additional unmanned stores open by the end of this month in densely populated areas such as Incheon, Ilsan, and Nowon, the total number of unmanned stores nationwide by the end of the first half of the year will remain at 20.

LG Electronics’ unmanned stores operate by scanning a QR code displayed at the entrance and verifying identity to open the door for entry. Customers can comfortably browse and experience the displayed products without staff following them. If product information is needed, it can be provided through kiosks or mobile devices, or customers must make a separate ‘consultation reservation.’ Using the KakaoTalk channel 1:1 consultation menu, customers can also receive answers to simple inquiries. Instead of people, a serving robot delivers necessary brochures or information.

An LG Electronics official said, "We will operate unmanned stores flexibly," adding, "Although the number of stores will decrease in the endemic era, since additional operating costs are not high, we can consider placing stores where needed."