Key Strategic Achievements as a 'Lifestyle-Focused Home Appliance Specialty Store'
First Half Operating Loss of 600 Million KRW... Deficit Significantly Reduced
Lotte Himart announced on the 28th that its operating profit for the second quarter of this year reached 10.5 billion KRW, marking a 277.2% increase compared to the same period last year. During the same period, sales amounted to 594.2 billion KRW, up 0.8% year-on-year. For the first half of the year, total sales were 1.1232 trillion KRW, and the operating loss was 600 million KRW. This represents a significant improvement compared to the 13.3 billion KRW deficit recorded in the first half of last year.
This improvement in performance is attributed to the effectiveness of the company's strategy to position itself as a 'lifestyle-focused home appliance specialty store.' Lotte Himart's flagship service, 'Himart Anshim Care Service,' which manages the entire lifecycle of customers' home appliance purchases, received positive feedback with over 1,000 customers using the service since the launch of the 'On-site Consulting Service' in June. As a result, total sales from this service in the first half of the year grew by 78% compared to the same period last year.
The expansion of 'experience-based stores' also played a significant role. In April, the Goduk branch in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, introduced a new mobile specialty store called 'Motopia.' Another Motopia was opened in May at the Sangnam branch in Changwon. Since opening, Motopia has achieved more than eight times the average monthly mobile sales compared to existing stores. Currently, Lotte Himart has implemented the 'Built-in Planner Solution,' which provides customized consultations by recreating customers' living spaces in 3D, at 150 locations, thereby strengthening its professional consulting services.
The newly launched private brand (PB) 'PLUX,' introduced in April, is also receiving a positive response. Of the 30 new products, 15 have ranked first in sales within their respective categories, and overall PB sales increased by 12% year-on-year. The company plans to continue launching new products in the second half of the year.
Lotte Himart plans to focus on expanding its regular care customer base in the second half of the year. By strengthening the 'Himart Subscription' service, which was introduced in May, the company aims to broaden its vision of 'Lifetime Care for Appliance Life.' The Himart Subscription surpassed 10 billion KRW in sales within just two months of launch, and is expected to attract up to 200,000 regular customers annually in the future.
Particularly noteworthy is the 'Apple Authorized Service Reception Agency' service, which begins this month. Lotte Himart became the first domestic distributor to receive official certification from Apple and has started offering repair reception agency services at 89 major stores nationwide. Including the 21 locations where official Apple service centers are already present, Apple repair services are now available at a total of 110 key outlets. Lotte Himart expects that the introduction of this service will lead to an increase in new customers, especially among younger consumers.
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