[Report] Opened a Mart After 6 Years... 'Ureureu' Opening Run, Lotte Mart Raises First Flag in Gangdong-gu

First New Store in Six Years Since Lotte Mall Suji Branch
Crowds Flock on Opening Day, Creating an "Open Run"
Fostering Next-Generation Urban Stores Specialized in Grocery
Non-Food Section Operated with a Focus on Value for Money

"Lotte Mart Cheonho Branch is now open for entry. Please enter in order."

At 9:30 a.m. on the 16th, in front of Lotte Mart Cheonho Branch in Gangdong-gu, Seoul. With the store opening scheduled for 10 a.m., the area in front of the store was already crowded with customers pushing shopping carts. As the first Lotte Mart to open in Gangdong-gu, it was the first large-scale mart to newly enter the area in a long time, drawing strong interest from local customers. Although it was a weekday morning, many customers visited the store, making it difficult to find space to move. Lotte Mart gave out shopping baskets on a first-come, first-served basis to customers visiting Cheonho Branch that day.

Customers are entering Lotte Mart Cheonho Branch, which opened on the 16th. Photo by Lotte Mart

On that day, Lotte Mart opened the Cheonho Branch on the basement first floor of an apartment complex near Cheonho Station in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, with a size of 1,374 pyeong (4,538㎡). This is the first new store Lotte Mart has opened in over six years. The last store to open before Cheonho Branch was Lotte Mart Lotte Mall Suji Branch, which opened on August 30, 2019.

Lotte Mart presents Cheonho Branch as an urban-style practical shopping store. This decision was made considering that the nearby commercial areas of Cheonho-dong and Seongnae-dong have a high proportion of people in their 30s and single-person households. The store size is 1,374 pyeong, about half the size of a typical large-scale mart's sales area. It was reminiscent of a corporate supermarket (SSM). Lotte Mart configured Cheonho Branch solely as a directly managed store without tenant (rental) spaces. Additionally, 80% of the store was filled with grocery products such as fresh and ready-to-eat foods and specialty stores. The non-food section was operated with a focus on cost-effective private brand (PB) products and popular brand products preferred by customers.

During a direct visit, the Cheonho Branch stood out for its focus on food products. From the store entrance, there was a display corner for ready-to-eat products. Named the 'Long Deli Road,' this area was 27 meters long and offered about 50% more deli products than a typical mart. The 'World Buffet' corner, where dishes from various countries are cooked and sold on the spot, and the 'Salad Zone,' which gathered salad ingredients and dressings in one place, were also located here.

Deli corner at Lotte Mart Cheonho branch. Photo by Lee Myunghwan

The 'Daily Meal Solution' frozen convenience food sales corner was also distinctive. This area displayed more than 70% more frozen convenience food products compared to regular stores. There were about 1,000 types of frozen products, and meal kit products numbered between 400 and 500. Meal kits from famous overseas restaurants like 'Coco Ichibanya' were also sold. According to a Lotte Mart official, the frozen section at Cheonho Branch is currently the largest among Lotte Mart stores.

The seasoning product shelves featured a 'Global Product Zone.' Considering the increasing number of 'home cook' customers who cook at home, various seasonings and sauces from around the world were gathered in one place. The pasta corner was stocked with various types of noodles such as spaghetti, fettuccine, and linguine, filling one side of the shelf, and directly opposite were diverse pasta sauces.

The 'Wine & Liquor Zone' expanded the selection of wine and whiskey by more than 10% compared to regular stores and newly established a non-alcoholic wine zone. Cheonho Branch introduced two types of 'Giwon,' Korea's first craft single malt whiskey (Eagle and Tiger), and exclusively sold 'Gangdong Beer,' a representative product designed with the landmark of Gangdong-gu.

Lotte Mart Cheonho Branch's Today's Good Shop-in-Shop Specialty Corner. Photo by Lee Myunghwan

Passing through the vast food section, the non-food section appeared on one side of the store. The non-food section was smaller in proportion compared to other stores, but it operated a specialized 'One Good Shop-in-Shop' zone. The specialized zone was designed to resemble a fixed-price lifestyle goods specialty store. Private brand (PB) products accounted for 60% of the product lineup here, with prices mainly set at uniform prices in 900 KRW increments such as 4,900 KRW, 7,900 KRW, 9,900 KRW, and 12,900 KRW. Additionally, a home smart appliance specialty zone including CCTV and smart hubs was operated, and convenience-enhancing product groups such as capsule detergents were strengthened, reflecting the characteristics of the commercial area.

With the opening of Cheonho Branch, Lotte Mart has thrown down the gauntlet in the Gangdong-gu mart competition. Gangdong-gu already has three large marts operating, making it a fiercely competitive commercial area in the industry. Directly across from Lotte Mart Cheonho Branch is Kim's Club Cheonho Branch, and Emart Cheonho Branch is also within about a 3-minute walk. Not far away is Gangdong Nonghyup Hanaro Mart Rodeo Branch. Homeplus Gangdong Branch is also nearby.

Amid expected intense competition, Lotte Mart decided to open a new store in Gangdong-gu based on the judgment that demand is abundant. Within a 2 km radius of Lotte Mart Cheonho Branch, about 170,000 households and approximately 360,000 people reside, and redevelopment and reconstruction area move-ins have started since last year. Nearby Dunchon-dong is home to Olympic Park Foreon, the largest apartment complex in Korea. Lotte Mart explained that the market has high growth potential thanks to demand and economic power from the surrounding population, and that the relatively aging facilities of nearby competing stores provide an advantage in terms of competitiveness.

Kang Sung-hyun, CEO of Lotte Mart & Super, said, "Cheonho Branch is the first store Lotte Mart has opened in six years, and it is a store that faithfully realizes customer value based on Lotte Mart's core competitiveness in grocery specialty content, setting the standard for next-generation grocery specialty stores." He added, "Along with Lotte Mart's growth strategies such as the integration of mart and super divisions and the transition to grocery specialty stores, through the expansion of both mart and super, we will achieve both quantitative and qualitative growth to become the 'Number One Grocery Market.'"