Temu Recruits Sellers for Open Market Last Month
Secures Massive Logistics Center Equivalent to 23 Soccer Fields
Chinese e-commerce platform Temu has secured a large-scale logistics center in South Korea. Following the announcement last month to recruit sellers for its open market (an online shopping mall connecting sellers and buyers) business in the country, Temu is now making a full-scale entry into the domestic market by securing a major logistics center.
According to the distribution industry on the 20th, Temu recently signed a long-term lease contract for a large logistics center located in Gimpo Hangang New City through a Chinese logistics agency. This logistics center in Guradong, Gimpo, is equipped with both cold and ambient temperature facilities and has a total floor area of approximately 165,000㎡ (about 50,000 pyeong), equivalent to 23 soccer fields, with one basement floor and ten above-ground floors.
The logistics center boasts an excellent location, being close to major airports and ports such as Incheon International Airport, Gimpo International Airport, and Incheon Port, as well as Seoul. The operation of the logistics center is handled by Lotte Global Logistics, a logistics affiliate of the Lotte Group.
This is the first case of a Chinese e-commerce company securing a large-scale logistics center in South Korea. Previously, Temu entered the Korean market about four years later than the Chinese platform AliExpress, which first entered the domestic market by launching a Korean-language sales site in August 2023. However, Temu has taken the lead over AliExpress by securing a logistics center first.
With this logistics center secured, Temu is expected to significantly shorten the delivery time of ultra-low-priced Chinese products. This is because products that are popular among domestic consumers can be stored in advance at the logistics center for fast delivery. It is also anticipated that Korean sellers’ products will be able to compete with domestic e-commerce companies and be delivered quickly.
Currently, AliExpress is reportedly considering locations such as Pyeongtaek and Incheon to secure logistics centers. Last year, it announced plans to invest more than $200 million (about 260 billion KRW) in logistics centers and announced at the end of last year that it would establish a joint venture with Gmarket. There is also a possibility of developing its domestic business by utilizing Gmarket’s Dongtan logistics center. Currently, AliExpress reduces delivery times by shipping products directly from its logistics centers near ports in China.
Industry insiders believe that Temu’s acceleration in the Korean market is influenced by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policies. Temu’s main market is the United States, and if a tariff war breaks out between the U.S. and China, Chinese e-commerce platforms (AliExpress, Temu, Shein) could be hit hard.
For this reason, it is analyzed that Temu is attempting to enter the Korean market, which is the fifth largest online market. The transaction volume of online shopping malls in Korea was estimated to be 242 trillion KRW as of last year.
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