Seocho-gu Emart and Costco to Open on Sundays...Mandatory Closure Days Moved to Weekdays

The First in Seoul Line... Implementation Possible as Early as January Next Year

Seong-su Jeon, Mayor of Seocho-gu (center), is taking a commemorative photo at the 'Seocho-gu Large and Small Distribution Win-Win Agreement Ceremony' held in the district office on the 19th. (Photo by Seocho-gu Office)

The mandatory closure days for large supermarkets in Seocho-gu, Seoul, which were designated as the second and fourth Sundays of each month, will be changed to weekdays (Monday or Wednesday). Seocho-gu (District Mayor Jeon Seong-su) announced on the 19th at the district office that it has signed the "Seocho-gu Win-Win Cooperation Agreement to Strengthen the Competitiveness of Large and Small-Medium Distribution Businesses," which changes the mandatory closure days for large supermarkets in the area. Seocho-gu is the first district in Seoul to implement this, with plans to start as early as January next year.

The signing ceremony was attended by Seo Min-hong, Chairman of the Seocho-Gangnam Supermarket Cooperative, and Kang Seong-hyun, President of the Korea Chain Store Association, among others. The win-win agreement includes changing the mandatory closure days of large supermarkets to weekdays, and large distribution companies cooperating in education, joint marketing, and product supply to strengthen the competitiveness of small and medium distribution businesses. Seocho-gu will provide the necessary administrative and policy support.

At the signing ceremony, Seocho-gu Mayor Jeon Seong-su said, "This agreement marks a meaningful start for small and medium distribution businesses and large supermarkets to join hands and coexist, and I thank all small and medium distributors, large supermarkets, and small business owners who helped make this possible." He added, "We will continue to do our best to revitalize both large and small distribution businesses and local commercial districts."

Seocho-gu has been working on preparing a win-win cooperation plan to switch large supermarkets to weekdays through eight rounds of close consultations between large supermarkets and small-medium distribution businesses. The district plans to proceed with related procedures such as administrative notice and public announcement soon.