Number of Stores Increased 20 Times Compared to First Year of Entry
"Goal of 1,000 Global Stores by 2025"
GS Retail's GS25 announced on the 8th that it has reached its 500th store in the global market just six years after its international expansion. The number of GS25 overseas stores has grown approximately 20 times compared to the first year of global entry.
According to GS25, as of the 7th, the number of overseas stores reached 518. Among them, the number of stores in Vietnam grew as follows: ▲26 stores in 2018 ▲55 stores in 2019 ▲86 stores in 2020 ▲157 stores in 2021 ▲211 stores in 2022 ▲230 stores in 2023 ▲245 stores in 2024. The number of stores in Mongolia was ▲34 stores in 2021 ▲112 stores in 2022 ▲268 stores in 2023 ▲273 stores in 2024. Compared to 2018, the first year of overseas expansion, the number of stores increased about 20 times.
GS25 also achieved notable results in the countries it entered. During this period, GS25 became the number one convenience store chain in southern Vietnam within five years. In Mongolia, it opened its 250th store in just 28 months and surpassed a 40% market share within three years. Earlier this month, combining Vietnam and Mongolia, GS25 surpassed the 'global 500-store' milestone.
GS25 attributes its successful establishment in overseas markets to its food culture strategy that integrates K-foods such as Tteokbokki, Cafe25, and Chicken25 locally, as well as the convenience store infrastructure serving as a restaurant, cafe, and resting place all in one. Thanks to this popularity, GS25's overseas sales in 2022 grew approximately 34.8 times compared to its first year of entry in 2018. GS25 expects overseas sales to continue growing annually alongside domestic and international growth.
Last month, GS25 accelerated its global expansion by launching its first franchise store in Mongolia. The opening of the first Mongolian GS25 franchise store came two and a half years after the first store opened in Mongolia. In Vietnam, franchise stores were introduced as early as December 2021 and have since expanded to 30 stores. GS25 explains that it is the only company in the domestic industry to open franchise stores in its overseas markets.
GS25 plans to speed up the development of franchise stores targeting local residents as well as directly operated stores, aiming to expand the number of stores in Vietnam and Mongolia to over 500 by 2025 and achieve 1,000 global stores. Additionally, it has set a mid-to-long-term goal of reaching 1,500 global stores by 2027.
Vietnamese local officials are posing in front of the 100th GS25 store in Vietnam. [Photo by GS Retail]
Jung Jae-hyung, Executive Director of GS Retail's Convenience Store Business Division, said, "About six years after GS25 entered overseas markets to secure new growth engines, we have achieved a 20-fold increase in the number of stores and reached the global 500-store milestone, writing a success story for K-convenience stores. We will leverage the overseas operational know-how accumulated so far, strengthen multifunctional infrastructure, and accelerate franchise expansion to become the undisputed number one convenience store locally and grow into a global franchise brand."
Meanwhile, to celebrate reaching 500 global stores this month, GS25 will hold global events in three countries: Korea, Vietnam, and Mongolia. From the 22nd to February 29th, a stamp event themed 'GS25 Global 500 Store Breakthrough Overseas Travel' will be held within each country's app, where customers who purchase overseas sourced products and K-foods will have a chance to win prizes such as airline tickets.
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