"CSAT is Over" Sales Soar... Lotte Hi-Mart Sees 80% Increase in Game Console Demand

Increased Customer Demand for Nintendo Switch and More
Four Days After Testing Show Year-on-Year Growth
Tablet Sales Also Up 40%

Lotte Hi-Mart announced on the 20th that, after the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test ended, sales data from November 15 to 18 showed that tablet and game electronics sales increased by approximately 40% and 80%, respectively, compared to the same days last year (November 17-20, 2023).

A customer is experiencing gaming electronics at Lotte Hi-Mart. Photo by Lotte Hi-Mart

During the same period, monitor sales increased by about 50%, and keyboard and mouse sales rose by about 30%. Tablets have been steadily growing in demand as the educational environment changes with the recent introduction of AI digital textbooks. The company explained that there is particularly high demand for cost-effective products priced between 100,000 and 300,000 KRW and popular products priced between 600,000 and 800,000 KRW, used mainly for video viewing and studying.

In gaming, popular products such as Nintendo's 'Switch OLED,' 'Switch OLED Animal Crossing Set,' and Meta's 'Meta Quest 3' drove customer demand. Since games are popular year-end gifts, demand is expected to continue for the time being. An analysis of game electronics sales by Lotte Hi-Mart over the past three years (2021-2023) showed that December consistently recorded the highest sales.

Considering this customer demand, Lotte Hi-Mart is offering special discounted prices on tablets and game products on its online shopping mall until the end of this month. The Apple iPad 10th generation (64GB) is available at a maximum discounted price of around 490,000 KRW with immediate discounts and event card purchase benefits, and the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE (128GB) is sold at a maximum discounted price of around 560,000 KRW through event card discounts. Additionally, for game products, a 20,000 KRW immediate discount is offered on the purchase of Nintendo Switch OLED console event products until the 24th, and title event products are also provided with up to a 10% discount.

Shin Hyun-chae, head of Lotte Hi-Mart's Smart Home Appliances Division, said, "The number of customers purchasing tablets and game electronics has significantly increased since the CSAT ended," adding, "With the year-end and graduation seasons approaching, we expect IT electronics demand to continue due to customers looking for gifts."