"You Won't Be Able to Resist": Retailers Go All-In Ahead of Year-End Mega Sales

Full-Scale Retail War Ahead of Year-End Mega Sales,
All-Out Participation from Online and Offline Players
Major Supermarkets Hit by 'Livelihood Coupons' Launch Aggressive Year-End Promotions

As the largest annual shopping festival approaches next month, the retail industry is launching large-scale discount events. Both online and offline retailers are aiming to attract cautious consumers by offering unprecedented price cuts and benefits. In particular, major hypermarket chains, whose recent performance has declined significantly due to the government’s issuance of 13 trillion won worth of livelihood recovery coupons, are seeking to turn things around through these discount events.

According to the retail industry on October 26, Shinsegae Group will hold its “SSG Day” discount event from October 30 to November 9, with all online and offline affiliates participating for 11 days. Now in its sixth year, Shinsegae Group is preparing its largest-ever discount event, worth about 2 trillion won. The event period has been extended by one day compared to last year. E-Mart will be at the center of the offline event, joined by 18 affiliates including Shinsegae Department Store Outlets (Shinsegae Simon), Shinsegae International, and Shinsegae Food.

Offline: ‘SSG Day vs Thank You Festival’... Online: ‘Nepda Shopping vs Big Smile Day vs Grand 11 Day’

According to the retail industry on October 23, Shinsegae Group will hold its “SSG Day” discount event from October 30 to November 9, with all online and offline affiliates participating for 11 days. Now in its sixth year, Shinsegae Group is preparing its largest-ever discount event, worth about 2 trillion won. The event period has been extended by one day compared to last year. E-Mart will be at the center of the offline event, joined by 18 affiliates including Shinsegae Department Store Outlets (Shinsegae Simon), Shinsegae International, and Shinsegae Food.

This year, there will also be discount events targeting foreign tourists. Chosun Hotel and JW Marriott will offer discounts on food and leisure facilities for foreign guests, and Emart24 will provide up to 30% off popular products for foreigners. Duty-free shops will offer shopping support benefits. Emart24’s Malaysia branch will host an SSG Day prize event. The goal is to develop SSG Day into a global shopping festival, similar to Black Friday in the United States and Singles’ Day in China.

Lotte’s retail affiliates are also launching their own discount events. Lotte Mart is preparing the largest event, going head-to-head with E-Mart by holding its “Thank You Festival” from October 30 to November 12 for 14 days. Lotte Mart will offer discounts of up to 60% through daily special deals, including “half-price Korean beef.” Discounted products will also be available on the online mall “Zeta.” Lotte Department Store will hold “Super L Day” on its online mall from the end of this month through next month, with over 100 participating companies in this large-scale promotion. Lotte Outlet stores will run the “Surprise Week” fall discount event.

In the e-commerce sector, Gmarket’s “Big Smile Day” and 11st’s “Grand 11 Day” will compete in a discount war from November 1 to 11. Since the scale of these open market events depends on seller participation, both companies are focusing heavily on recruiting sellers. Gmarket, hosting the event for the first time as a joint venture between Shinsegae Group and Ali International, is offering sellers unprecedented terms, covering all discount costs and eliminating separate fees previously charged on discount coupons. This demonstrates the company’s intention to hold the largest discount event of the second half of the year.

11st is building anticipation with a pre-promotion campaign, and seller recruitment will continue until October 27. This year’s Grand 11 Day will feature enhanced special promotions, including limited-quantity “time deals,” “10-minute rush,” and “60-minute rush” ultra-special deals.

Naver is the dark horse. Like Gmarket and 11st, Naver operates as an open market and will hold its “Nepda Sale” for 13 days from October 29 to November 11. The event is a renewed version of the previous “Naver Shopping Festa,” and as it is the first of its kind, Naver plans to focus on exclusive products, unique bundles, and special deals. A Naver Shopping representative explained, “More sellers will participate than in the previous Naver Shopping Festa, making for a larger-scale shopping event.”

As in previous years, Coupang will hold its “Rocket Direct Purchase Singles’ Day” event in November. Timed to coincide with China’s major Singles’ Day discount event, this allows consumers to buy global brand products at lower prices through direct international purchases.

Can Hypermarkets Recover Performance After the Blow from Livelihood Recovery Coupons?

Attention is focused on whether hypermarkets can use these events as an opportunity to reverse their performance. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, as of August, hypermarket sales declined by 15.6% compared to the same month last year, continuing a slump. Hypermarkets have shown negative growth since February this year, with sales in July also down 2.4% year-on-year. The larger decline in August was due to Chuseok falling about 19 days later than last year, resulting in no sales boost during that period.

In contrast, department stores saw sales increase thanks to higher demand for luxury goods and wedding gifts, as well as an influx of foreign tourists. Department stores also ramped up indoor marketing to combat the heatwave, which contributed to the growth. As of August, department stores recorded a growth rate of 2.8%.

The weak growth rate of hypermarkets is largely attributed to the government’s issuance of 13 trillion won worth of livelihood recovery coupons. Increased demand for dining out dispersed spending on food and daily necessities, and with hypermarkets excluded from eligible outlets, demand shifted to convenience stores. As this year’s business has not gone as planned, hypermarkets are aiming to reverse their fortunes with year-end discount events. A hypermarket official stated, “Since our performance in August and September fell short of expectations, we plan to boost demand and turn things around with major year-end events.”