Attending the NRF Big Show APAC
"West Lake Hanoi, a Differentiated Retail Platform"
Participants Praise Singapore's 'Lotte Mart Express'
Kim Sanghyun, Vice Chairman and General Representative of Lotte Distribution Group, attended the 'NRF Big Show APAC 2025' held in Singapore from June 3 to June 5. At the event, he shared Lotte Distribution Group's innovation cases and expressed his commitment to focusing on global business expansion and artificial intelligence (AI) innovation.
On the 3rd, Kim Sanghyun, Vice Chairman and General Representative of Lotte Distribution Group (right), attended the 'NRF Big Show APAC 2025' at Marina Bay Sands Singapore and had a discussion with Vipul Chaula, CEO of FairPrice Group (left). Provided by Lotte Distribution Group.
The NRF Big Show is a global retail expo organized by the National Retail Federation, held annually in the United States every January. The NRF Big Show APAC is a retail expo focused on the Asia-Pacific region and was first held in Singapore last year. This year, approximately 10,000 people attended, including CEOs and leaders from Asia-Pacific retail companies such as Amazon and AEON, as well as retail experts.
The theme for this year was 'The Infinite Possibilities of Retail.' On June 3, Vice Chairman Kim attended the event and participated in a discussion on 'Lotte's Retail Innovation' with Vipul Chaula, CEO of Singapore's largest retail company, FairPrice Group.
At the event, Vice Chairman Kim began by stating, "Lotte Distribution Group is continuously building a differentiated retail platform centered on customer experience, strengthening global competitiveness under the vision of becoming 'the customer's first shopping destination.'"
Vice Chairman Kim then mentioned the opening of 'Lotte Mall West Lake Hanoi,' explaining, "Our continuous efforts to enhance customer experience show that the retail industry is evolving beyond simple sales into a platform that connects customers and culture."
Lotte Mall West Lake Hanoi became a landmark in Hanoi, surpassing cumulative sales of 200 billion KRW within nine months of its opening in 2023 and 10 million cumulative visitors within 354 days. As a complex mall combining shopping, culture, experiences, and premium elements, it is regarded as a successful overseas business model that realizes synergy among Lotte Group affiliates such as shopping malls, marts, and hotels. In the first quarter of this year, sales increased by 21.9% compared to the previous year, and the mall turned to operating profit within six quarters of opening.
Vice Chairman Kim also explained that the group is seeking new opportunities through global business expansion and AI-driven innovation. He said, "As Korean content such as K-food, K-beauty, and K-fashion is gaining worldwide attention, we have collaborated with Singapore's largest retail company, FairPrice, to open 'Lotte Mart Express' and are actively introducing our private brand (PB) products to the local market." He added, "We plan to accelerate PB exports through local partnerships and expand this collaboration model to various markets." He continued, "We are building an AI-based smart fulfillment center (CFC) in Busan in collaboration with Ocado, and through this, we aim to further enhance our AI-driven hyper-personalized recommendations and logistics automation capabilities."
Finally, Vice Chairman Kim stated, "The most important thing in the retail industry over the next three to five years is to provide value to customers' time and experience," emphasizing, "The most important task is to create an environment that customers want and to make shopping an enjoyable experience." He stressed the importance of visiting the field, listening directly to employees and customers, and maintaining a mindset of continuous learning. He said, "We will continue to strengthen customer-centric management, pursue innovation based on technology and data, and further enhance the competitiveness of Lotte Distribution Group in the global market."
Meanwhile, on the afternoon of the same day, global retail industry representatives visited the 'Lotte Mart Express' store inside FairPrice VivoCity in Singapore. At the site, Lotte Mart's private brands 'Yorihada' and 'Oneuljoeun' received high praise from local stakeholders for their excellent taste and quality.
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