"Wait, Is This Korea?"... Unlimited Tteokbokki and Beauty Shops Make Hanoi a Hot Spot [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 the plaza in front of the entrance. Photo by Kim Heungsun

#Lotte Mall Westlake Hanoi, facing West Lake, the largest lake in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi. The fountain in the plaza in front of the entrance changed its lights and water jets in real time to the rhythms of K-pop hits like Psy's "Gangnam Style" and Big Bang's "Haru Haru." Young women dressed up in their best and parents with young children repeatedly pressed the shutter on their mobile phone cameras, capturing the fountain and the mall in the background. Inside, from the white-toned interior to familiar storefronts such as the unlimited tteokbokki buffet "Dookki," the Chinese restaurant "Yeongyeong," and the snack shop "Sibwonppang," the mall appears to be a direct transplant of a Korean shopping mall.

Since opening in September 2023, Westlake Hanoi Mall has entered its fourth year and has established itself as a local landmark, encompassing both Korean shopping culture and the everyday 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

Transplanting the Full Korean Shopping Experience... The Spread of Hallyu in Vietnam

Westlake Hanoi Mall is just over a 30-minute drive from the airport. However, it is located on the outskirts, away from the core commercial districts with government offices and heavy foot traffic, making it less advantageous for attracting local customers, who account for 95% of sales. The mall has overcome this weakness by offering a pleasant shopping environment and differentiated content that is hard to find elsewhere in Vietnam.

Notable examples include the entry of well-known Korean hair salon franchises, which are unfamiliar to Vietnam, and the introduction of about 40% of its 230 brands-including major 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. It offers medical care in 12 departments, including internal medicine, surgery, and obstetrics and gynecology, and features equipment such as CT and MRI scanners, providing Korean-style health checkups.

As a result, the mall has become a popular hotspot for locals to spend their leisure time after work. Nam Woohyun, Head of Operations Management at Westlake Hanoi, said, "When we first opened, the concept of a multi-purpose shopping mall was new, so many locals would take off their shoes and walk around the corridors, eat lunchboxes, or smoke cigarettes-visiting more out of curiosity than to shop. However, as we entered our second year, the proportion of visitors who made purchases increased by about 20% compared to the previous year, as the Korean-style shopping experience took root."

In fact, last month, due to the nature of work in Vietnam-where most employees work until Saturday-the number of visitors to Hanoi Mall increased noticeably in the evenings. Dookki was already filled with customers and 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 (Executive Director), said, "While the price for Dookki in Korea is in the 10,000 won range, here it is 7,000 to 8,000 won, which is not cheap considering local income levels. However, the popularity of K-food, along with sauces and ingredients tailored to local tastes, has helped this store alone achieve monthly sales of 160 million won."

Lotte Mart on the B1 floor also reflects a blend of Korean and Vietnamese food cultures. In the fruit section, durian and dragon fruit-favorites among locals-are displayed alongside premium fruits imported from Korea, such as sweet persimmons and pears. The deli (ready-to-eat) corner, selling sushi, fried chicken, tteokbokki, and gimbap, is so popular that lines often form. 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 Heungsun Kim

Lotte Department Store Hanoi, located in Lotte Center Hanoi about a 15-minute drive from Hanoi Mall, is particularly strong in cosmetics. It is the only local store to house all four major global beauty brands-Chanel, Christian Dior, Lancome, and Estee Lauder-and offers 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. The store has gained a reputation locally as the only place where customers can compare and purchase a wide range of global and Korean beauty brands."

Lotte currently operates two department stores and one shopping mall in Vietnam: Westlake Hanoi, Lotte Department Store Hanoi, and Lotte Department Store Ho Chi Minh. In the Vietnamese department store and shopping mall market, Vincom Mall-run by the country's largest private company, Vingroup-leads with 90 locations, while Japan's Aeon Group, which entered the market before Lotte, operates 12 stores.

In contrast, competitor Vincom Mall has secured prime locations throughout Hanoi, but its facilities are aging, and the long, linear layout with a mix of brands makes it feel more like a subway station shopping arcade in Korea. A Lotte representative explained, "Vingroup focuses more on real estate leasing and sales than on retail. They allocate prime spots to tenants who pay the highest rent, without much regard for the mall's unique features or shopping convenience."

Strategic Market Nurtured Over 20 Years... 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 designated Vietnam as a strategic overseas market and has invested significant effort in establishing a local presence. For example, Lotte Department Store managed the Diamond Plaza in Ho Chi Minh City-the first department store in Vietnam-on a consignment basis from 2008 to 2011. Through this, Lotte gained know-how on preferred brands, merchandising, and services, as well as the necessary business networks. In 2014, Lotte built Lotte Center Hanoi, its first overseas mixed-use complex, a 65-story skyscraper housing a department store, residences, hotel, and observatory. These investments were made in consideration of Vietnam's high economic growth rate, robust young consumer base, and the growth potential of the retail sector.

According to market research firm Euromonitor, the size of Vietnam's retail market grew by more than 30%, from $93.1587 billion (about 137 trillion won) in 2019 to $121.2 billion (about 179 trillion won) in 2024, and is expected to reach about $170 billion (about 251 trillion won) by 2029. The F&B market, in particular, is developing rapidly, with its size reaching 688.8 trillion VND (about 39 trillion won) in 2024, up 16.6% from the previous year. 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-first-generation Hallyu-and the K-food promoted through them remain strong in Vietnam. According to KOTRA, last year, Vietnamese consumers spent an average of $17.8 (about 26,000 won) per month on K-food-related content, a 40.2% increase from the previous year, and the conversion rate of those exposed to K-content who actually tried K-foods like gimbap, kimchi, tteokbokki, ramen, and samgyeopsal reached 84.3%.

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

Lotte is considering adding more mixed-use complexes like Westlake Hanoi Mall in major Vietnamese cities by 2030. CEO Kim emphasized, "Vietnam is not a market chosen for short-term profits, but a strategic selection with a 50-year outlook. Our goal is to maintain a dominant position in the market by embracing customers of all ages and blending the cultures of both countries."