Earning 160 Million Won a Month with Tteokbokki... Hanoi's Hot Spot That Brought Korea in Its Entirety [K-Wave 3.0]⑩

4th Year Report on Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi
Korean-Style Shopping Experience Transplanted to Vietnam
Lotte Department Store Hanoi Gains Reputation as a Beauty-Focused Destination
Vietnam's Retail Market on the Rise... "A Market with a 50-Year Vi

Local customers visiting Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi are enjoying leisure time at the fountain set up in front of the entrance plaza. Photo by Kim Heungsun

Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi, facing 'West Lake,' the largest lake in Hanoi, Vietnam's capital. The fountain in the entrance plaza constantly changed its lights and water jets to the rhythms of K-pop songs such as Psy's "Gangnam Style" and Big Bang's "Haru Haru." Young women dressed up for the occasion and parents with children repeatedly pressed the shutter on their phone cameras, capturing the fountain and the mall as their backdrop. Inside, the mall looked just like a Korean shopping mall, from its white-toned interior to familiar signs like the unlimited tteokbokki buffet "Dookki," the Chinese restaurant "Yeonkyung," and the snack shop "Sibwonppang."

Westlake Hanoi Mall, which opened in September 2023, is entering its fourth year of operation and has established itself as a local landmark that encompasses both Korean shopping culture and the daily lives of local residents.

Local customers visiting Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi are taking commemorative photos with the fountain in the background. Photo by Kim Heungsun

The Complete Korean Shopping Experience Transplanted: The Spread of Hallyu in Vietnam

Westlake Hanoi Mall is about a 30-minute drive from the airport. However, since it is located on the outskirts, somewhat removed from the core commercial districts with government offices and heavy foot traffic, it is at a disadvantage in attracting local customers, who account for 95% of its sales. The mall compensated for this weakness with a pleasant shopping environment and differentiated content rarely found in Vietnam.

Notable examples include the entry of well-known Korean hair salon franchises, which are unfamiliar in Vietnam, and the introduction of about 40% of its 230 brands-including large bookstores, fashion, beauty, and F&B-as firsts in the local market. The office building also houses the first overseas branch of H Plus Yangji Hospital, a comprehensive Korean hospital. The hospital offers medical services in 12 departments, including internal medicine, surgery, and obstetrics and gynecology, and provides Korean-style health checkups with CT and MRI equipment.

As a result, the mall has become a hot spot for local Vietnamese to spend their leisure time after work. Nam Woo-hyun, Head of Operations at Westlake Hanoi, said, "In the early days, the concept of a multi-complex shopping mall was unfamiliar, so many locals visited out of curiosity, spending time walking barefoot in the corridors, eating packed meals, or smoking, rather than shopping." He added, "After two years, the Korean-style shopping experience has taken root, and the conversion rate from visitors to buyers has increased by about 20% compared to the previous year."

Indeed, last month, due to the work culture in Vietnam where most employees work until Saturday, the number of visitors to Hanoi Mall increased significantly in the evening. The Dookki restaurant was already so full of customers that it was not accepting any more on the waiting list. Kim Junyoung, Head of Overseas Business at Lotte Department Store and CEO of Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi (Executive Director), said, "While the price for Dookki in Korea is in the 10,000 won range, here it is about 7,000 to 8,000 won, which is not cheap considering local income levels." He added, "Thanks to the popularity of K-food and sauces and ingredients tailored to local tastes, this store alone generates monthly sales of 160 million won."

On the B1 floor, Lotte Mart also showcased a blend of Korean and Vietnamese food cultures. In addition to local favorites like durian and dragon fruit, premium Korean fruits such as persimmons and pears were displayed. The deli (ready-to-eat) section, selling sushi, fried chicken, tteokbokki, and kimbap, was so popular that lines formed. Housewife Lan said, "It's close to home, and I can buy good ingredients at reasonable prices at Lotte Mart, so I visit Westlake Hanoi Mall once a week."

Local customers are waiting to check out at Lotte Mart on the B1 floor of Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi. Photo by Kim Heungsun

The first overseas branch of H Plus Yangji Hospital, located in the office building of Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi. Photo by Kim Heungsun

Lotte Department Store Hanoi, located at Lotte Center Hanoi about 15 minutes by car from Hanoi Mall, is especially strong in cosmetics among its merchandise selection. It is the only local department store to house all four global beauty brands-Chanel, Christian Dior, Lanc?me, and Est?e Lauder-and features as many as 36 individual beauty brands. Lee Jaejin, Store Manager of Lotte Department Store Hanoi, said, "On weekends, when customer traffic peaks, we host makeup events and pop-up stores for beauty brands here," adding, "Word has spread locally that this is the only place where you can compare and purchase a variety of global and Korean beauty brands."

Lotte operates two department stores and one shopping mall in Vietnam: Westlake Hanoi, Lotte Department Store Hanoi, and Lotte Department Store Ho Chi Minh. In Vietnam's department store and shopping mall sector, Vingroup's Vincom Mall dominates with 90 locations, and Japan's Aeon Group, which entered the market earlier than Lotte, operates 12 Aeon Mall stores.

By contrast, competitor Vincom Mall has secured prime locations in key areas of Hanoi, but its facilities are aging, and the long, linear layout with a mix of various brands gives it the feel of a subway station shopping complex in Korea. A Lotte representative said, "Vingroup focuses more on real estate leasing and sales than on retail," adding, "They do not consider the uniqueness or convenience of the shopping mall, but rather allocate the best locations to tenants who pay the highest rent."

Over 20 Years of Strategic Investment: The Halo Effect of K-Content

Lotte Center Hanoi, home to Lotte Department Store Hanoi. Photo by Heungsun Kim

Since the early 2000s, Lotte has identified Vietnam as a strategic overseas market and has made significant efforts to establish a presence there. For example, Lotte Department Store managed Diamond Plaza in Ho Chi Minh City-the first department store in Vietnam-under contract for three years starting in 2008. This allowed the company to gain expertise in preferred brands, merchandise mix, and services, as well as to build the necessary business network. In 2014, Lotte built Lotte Center Hanoi, its first overseas multi-complex, featuring a 65-story skyscraper with a department store, residences, hotel, and observatory. This investment was made in consideration of Vietnam's high economic growth rate, robust young consumer base, and the growth potential of its retail sector.

According to market research firm Euromonitor, the size of Vietnam's retail market grew by more than 30%, from 93.1587 billion dollars (about 137 trillion won) in 2019 to 121.2 billion dollars (about 179 trillion won) in 2024, and is expected to reach about 170 billion dollars (about 251 trillion won) by 2029. In particular, the F&B market is developing rapidly, with the sector's market size in 2024 reaching 688.8 trillion dong (about 39 trillion won), a 16.6% increase from the previous year. Also, unlike Korea, where online platforms dominate, the offline share of the retail market in Vietnam remains overwhelming at 89% as of 2024.

K-pop, dramas, variety shows, and the first generation of Hallyu, as well as K-food popularized through them, remain strong in Vietnam. According to KOTRA, last year, Vietnamese consumers spent an average of 17.8 dollars (about 26,000 won) per month on K-food-related content, a 40.2% increase from the previous year. The purchase conversion rate for K-foods exposed through K-content-such as kimbap, kimchi, tteokbokki, ramen, and pork belly-reached as high as 84.3%.

Thanks to this halo effect, Westlake Hanoi Mall has quickly established itself in the local market, attracting nearly 30 million cumulative visitors by December last year, just over two years after opening, and is expected to surpass 1 trillion won in cumulative sales by the end of this year. Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dongbin also mentioned in his New Year's address that Westlake Hanoi Mall's strengthened status as a local landmark is one of the company's global achievements. Lotte Department Store Hanoi also saw its sales rise by about 15% last year compared to the previous year.

Lotte is considering adding more multi-complexes like Westlake Hanoi Mall in major Vietnamese cities by 2030. CEO Kim emphasized, "Vietnam is not a market we chose for short-term profits, but a strategic choice with a vision of more than 50 years," adding, "Our goal is to maintain a dominant position in the market by embracing customers of all age groups and blending the cultures of both countries."