One in Three Koreans is a 'Runner'... Shinsegae Department Store Renovates Sports Section

Sports Shoes Sales Up 35.5% YoY
Hanam Branch Renovates Nike Rise Store
Gwangju Shinsegae and Gimhae Branch Open New Balance Megashop

Shinsegae Department Store is renovating sports stores nationwide to target the demand of 'runner' customers. This comes as a running craze sweeps through young customers, especially those in their 20s and 30s.

According to Shinsegae Department Store on the 6th, sales in the 'sports shoes' category, including running shoes, increased by 35.5% last month compared to the same period last year. This is because more young people have recently taken up running. According to a survey by Gallup Korea, the percentage of respondents who reported jogging or running in the past year rose from 23% in 2021 and 27% in 2022 to 32% last year.

Shinsegae Department Store Hanam Branch 'Nike Rise' Store. [Photo by Shinsegae Department Store]

Welcoming the running-friendly autumn season, Shinsegae Department Store is renewing stores such as Nike and New Balance and offering a variety of running apparel and running shoes. First, the Hanam branch renewed its existing Nike store into a 'Nike Rise' store on the 1st of this month. Nike Rise is Nike's new concept store emphasizing digital and personal experiences.

The renewed store expanded the existing Nike store by 3.5 times, occupying an area of 530㎡ (approximately 160 pyeong). Along with the renewal, it introduced running and training category products that were not previously available. Reflecting the recent increase in female runners, 57% of the total products are women's items. Shinsegae expects the proportion of women's sales at the Hanam Nike store to increase from the previous 35-45% range to 50%.

Later this month, New Balance's mega shops, which are ultra-large stores, will open at Gwangju Shinsegae and Gimhae branches respectively. Mega shops are stores that are 3 to 3.5 times larger than existing stores, allowing customers to experience all categories of New Balance products.

The Shinsegae Gwangju New Balance Mega Shop, opening on the 18th, will be a running-specialized store of about 102 pyeong. It will exclusively launch popular models such as the mid- to long-distance running shoe 'PureCell SC Trainer,' which caused open runs at New Balance stores nationwide last August, as well as '530SG,' '2002RC,' and '1906REH.' In addition, a variety of performance-specialized apparel and accessories will be available.

Sun Hyun-woo, head of fashion at Shinsegae Department Store, said, "This year, sports sales centered on running apparel and shoes have been steadily strong," adding, "We will continue to introduce stores filled with popular products as well as experiential and interactive elements."