"Seong Si-kyung Praised Pyeongnaeng Restaurant Coming In"... Department Store 'Luxury Dining' Competition Rivaling Erusha [Luxury World]

Department Stores Intensify Competition for Exclusive F&B Brands
Lotte Department Store Brings in "Seoryeong" and "Haenam Cheonilgwan"
Shinsegae Department Store Sees 160% Sales Surge After "House of Shinsegae" Renewal
"F&B Becomes a Key Customer Magnet for Retailers"

Luxury brand sections are called the "flower of department stores." The presence of the three major high-end luxury brands known as "EruSha" (Herm?s, Louis Vuitton, Chanel) and the swift attraction of new luxury brands determine the competitiveness of department stores. However, as e-commerce platforms have recently expanded their offensive into the luxury market, offline department stores are seeking breakthroughs through food and beverage (F&B) outlets. They have enhanced their customer attraction competitiveness by bringing F&B businesses, known for their "waiting hell," into department stores while leveraging their strengths specialized in "premium and luxury."

Singer Sung Si-kyung is eating Pyongyang naengmyeon at Namdaemun Seoryeong. Screenshot from Sung Si-kyung's YouTube channel "Meokultende".

According to the distribution industry on the 30th, "Seoryeong," a new Pyongyang cold noodles (Pyongyang naengmyeon) restaurant, will open next month in Lotte World Mall, Jamsil. This is Seoryeong's first entry into a department store. Seoryeong was originally a small shop in Ganghwa Island that sold a limited 200 bowls of Pyongyang cold noodles per day. The noodles are 100% buckwheat pure noodles with no wheat flour or starch, and their chewy texture has made it a "life-changing restaurant" for Pyongyang cold noodle enthusiasts, drawing long waiting lines.

Last year, it relocated to Namdaemun, Seoul. Recognized by gourmets, it was also selected as a "Bib Gourmand" restaurant in the 2025 Michelin Guide. Recently, singer Sung Si-kyung, known for his refined taste, filmed his YouTube personal broadcast "Meokultende," gathering Pyongyang cold noodles and boiled pork enthusiasts nationwide. Sung praised the restaurant as a "place with delicious noodles." Because of this, all reservations for March on an online site were fully booked.

The person who brought Seoryeong into the department store is Chief Buyer Ahn Hyo-hyun of Lotte Department Store's dining team. It is known that Buyer Ahn visited Ganghwa Island frequently for three years to persuade Seoryeong. He persistently convinced the couple, CEO Lee Kyung-hee and Jung Jong-moon, of Seoryeong. After years of building trust, this year they unveiled Seoryeong's second store at Lotte World Mall in Jamsil. Rumor has it that competing department stores also visited Ganghwa Island to try to bring Seoryeong into their stores.

Jamsil Avenue L 6th floor Haenam Cheonil-gwan exterior image. Provided by Lotte Department Store.

Lotte Department Store is focusing on strengthening F&B at Jamsil AvenueL and Jamsil Mall. Since AvenueL surpassed 1 trillion KRW in sales in 2023 as a single luxury brand hall, the strategy is to attract luxury-level restaurants to increase consumer satisfaction. In May last year, they introduced the premium Korean dining "Haenam Cheonilgwan," selected in the 2024 Michelin Guide. Haenam Cheonilgwan has stores only in Banpo (main branch) and Jamsil. Lotte Department Store Jamsil plans to launch Jeju Island's first omakase brand "Sushi Hosakai" in May. The store will be named "Boutique Hosikai" and will feature a concept fusing Korean and Japanese cuisine.

Shinsegae Department Store renewed its Gangnam branch and attracted numerous exclusive F&B brands to "House of Shinsegae." Major brands include "Yoon Haeundae Galbi," "Kim Susa," "Unagi Yondaime Kikukawa," "Goryangjugwan," "HON," "Bawi Pasta Bar," and "Mido Hanwoo Hamburg." These brands have headquarters in Korea, the United States, and Japan, and they are entering Shinsegae Department Store for the first time among distributors.

Among them, Yoon Haeundae Galbi is a Korean beef female cow rib restaurant headquartered in Manhattan, New York. It was opened by CEO Yoon Ju-sung, the grandson of the founder of the Busan "Haeundae Female Cow Rib" restaurant, and the Shinsegae Department Store location is the only domestic store. Unagi Yondaime Kikukawa is an eel specialty restaurant headquartered in Nagoya, Japan, since 1932 and is now run by the fourth generation. Having experienced the effects of F&B, Shinsegae Department Store recently renewed its main branch's F&B section and exclusively introduced "Seogwan Myeonok" and "Gwanghwamun Gukbap."

Hyundai Department Store is also enhancing its food hall competitiveness with exclusive brands. The renewed Jungdong branch in April introduced the character macaron specialty "Robin Dessert Shop" and the first store of Taiwanese frothy beverage "Drink Store." The Apgujeong branch, renewed in July 2023, also operates first department store locations. These include the Korean beef omakase "Isok Woo-hwa" teppanyaki specialty "Woo-hwa-ham," Tokyo chiffon cake specialty "Masabis," and Japanese cuisine brand "Makisandai."

Industry insiders agree that strengthening F&B is essential to enhance offline store competitiveness in the department store sector. While consumption in the core fashion business of department stores has declined, the F&B sector has maintained double-digit growth rates. Last year, Lotte Department Store's food hall recorded a 25% sales growth, and Hyundai Department Store's grew by 12%. Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam's "House of Shinsegae," renewed in June last year, saw a 160% sales increase compared to the same period the previous year (June 10, 2023?March 18, 2024).

F&B also effectively draws customers to department stores. Therefore, competition among buyers to secure exclusive stores is fierce. Food buyers from each department store travel across the country tasting food dozens or hundreds of times. A department store industry official explained, "F&B content has become a key attraction point for distributors," adding, "It has become important to introduce differentiated F&B content that reflects each department store's unique character."

Recent trends in the dining industry have also fueled competition for exclusive stores among department stores. In the past, when a famous restaurant entered a department store and sales increased significantly, it would rapidly expand to other department stores. However, recently, restaurants have been reluctant to increase the number of stores. They tend to open only one or two additional branches within the same department store. Many restaurants prefer to maintain consistent quality by having fewer locations. A distribution industry insider said, "Even within the same department store, when proposals are made to open additional branches in other stores, they are cautious," explaining, "They focus on whether the quality of food and service can be maintained."