Tmon Strengthens Competitiveness with Exclusive Products
Wemakeprice Enhances W Travel & Leisure
As consumers are increasingly willing to open their wallets for travel following the COVID-19 endemic phase (periodic outbreaks of infectious diseases), e-commerce companies are quickly formulating response strategies. After emerging from the long tunnel of COVID-19 last year and seeing the market regain vitality, this year is expected to see the full-scale start of "revenge travel," coinciding with the reduction of international fuel surcharges since January. In particular, TMON and WEMAKEPRICE, both acquired by Qoo10 in 2022 and last year respectively, are focusing on strengthening their competitiveness in travel products this year. Amid fierce competition in the e-commerce market, they are being evaluated as laying the groundwork for a resurgence in this sector.
On the 12th, WEMAKEPRICE announced that its transaction volume in the travel sector increased by 90% compared to the previous year. During the same period, TMON's travel sector transaction volume also rose by 50%. Considering that domestic travel consumption began to recover from 2022, this upward trend is analyzed to be due to an increase in sales of overseas travel products. According to the Korea Tourism Organization, as of November last year, the number of outbound Korean travelers was about 2.06 million, recovering to 99% of the same period in 2019 before COVID-19. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) also forecasted that the global travel market would recover to 90% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of this year. This trend is also confirmed by the crowds at airports early this year. On the weekend of the 7th, the daily number of users at Incheon Airport was 193,009, approaching the 2019 daily average of 194,986.
E-commerce companies selling travel products are also actively moving to capture this market. TMON has strengthened collaborations not only with domestic and international travel agencies but also with overseas tourism boards. This is to significantly expand exclusive product lines available only on TMON. Already this month, they launched a joint promotion with the Hong Kong Tourism Board offering up to 50% discounts on flights to Hong Kong. Various events such as the ‘TMON Tour Travel Expo’ are also being held to broaden the customer base.
They also plan to continue aggressive targeting of popular travel destinations. For example, the Japanese travel packages sold by TMON in the fourth quarter of last year saw transaction volumes increase more than tenfold compared to 2019, enjoying great popularity. The strategy targeting increased demand for travel to Japan due to the weak yen phenomenon proved effective.
WEMAKEPRICE also renewed its travel-specialized platform ‘W Travel Leisure’ to allow users to view products such as flights, accommodations, and activities all in one place. The overseas package products sold here saw transaction volumes increase about 12 times compared to the previous year. To capture this demand for package tours, WEMAKEPRICE is collaborating with leading domestic travel agencies in various ways. They recently completed product linkage with Hanatour and are receiving real-time data on about 100,000 travel products from a total of 10 travel agencies, including Mode Tour and Kyowon Tour. Additionally, they plan to cooperate with new partners every month to plan and offer exclusive products at affordable prices.
They are also strengthening competitiveness in overseas independent travel. Starting with real-time overseas hotel booking services in the first quarter of this year, they plan to enable real-time flight ticket payments through their own system in the second quarter. Kwon Min-su, head of WEMAKEPRICE’s Omni Plus Business Division, said, "Recently, customers’ travel demands have become more diverse and detailed," adding, "W Travel Leisure will evolve into a leading travel platform where users can handle everything from flight tickets to accommodations and activities all at once."
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