Seocho-gu Large Mart Operating Hours Restriction 'Effectively Abolished'

Operating Hours Restricted to 1 Hour Between 2-3 AM
Online Sales Competition Enabled Including Early Morning Delivery
Applied to 37 Locations Including Emart and Costco Yangjae Branch

Seocho-gu, Seoul (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) announced on the 30th that starting July 1, the operating restriction hours for large supermarkets will be drastically reduced to 1 hour, effectively lifting the restrictions entirely.

Accordingly, from July, four large supermarkets in Seocho-gu, including E-Mart Yangjae Branch, Lotte Mart Seocho Branch, Kim's Club Gangnam Branch, and Costco Yangjae Branch, as well as 33 semi-large stores such as Lotte Super and Homeplus, will be able to enter the online sales market, including early morning delivery, without any operating hour restrictions.

The district had previously announced in May through an administrative notice that the operating restriction hours for large supermarkets and semi-large stores would change from the existing 0:00?8:00 (8 hours) to 2:00?3:00 (1 hour). After gathering opinions and holding the Distribution Industry Win-Win Development Council, the administrative notice was implemented on the 20th, with enforcement starting from the 1st of next month.

Seocho-gu views this measure as a signal for nationwide regulatory improvement following the shift of mandatory closure days for large supermarkets to weekdays in January. As the share of online sales in the distribution industry increases, easing outdated and unreasonable regulations on large supermarkets is expected to broaden consumer choices and promote growth and development in the distribution sector through fair competition.

A district official stated, “We left a 1-hour operating restriction as a gesture to urge the revision of the Distribution Act, hoping it will lead to nationwide regulatory reform through the government and the National Assembly.”

Meanwhile, the district plans to exert maximum administrative effort to prevent unreasonable negotiations between labor and management, addressing concerns that easing regulations on large supermarkets could pose risks to local small businesses and worsen working conditions for related employees. Additionally, since implementing the shift of mandatory closure days to weekdays in January, the district has been working to establish a ‘Seocho-type win-win model’ by signing agreements between small supermarkets and large supermarkets.

Mayor Jeon Seong-su said, “It is the duty of the district mayor to improve regulations in line with changing times to enhance residents’ quality of life,” adding, “Through this easing of regulations on large supermarkets, we will lead the growth and development of the distribution industry and devote even more effort to revitalizing the local economy.”