KOREAN NET

CU Music Library, part of the CU convenience store chain with two branches at CU AK and Hongdae, on Nov. 29 displays K-pop albums and items on its shelves. (Xu Aiying)

By Xu Aiying

#1. Upon entering a convenience store, a large screen displaying K-pop music videos immediately grabs attention. The K-pop-themed branch neatly displays fan merchandise on its shelves. This is the entertainment-centric CU Music Library, with two branches (CU AK and Hongdae) in Seoul's Mapo-gu District.

#2. In the capital's downtown Jongno-gu District, another convenience store branch, GS25's Ground Blue 49, has a technology theme. A robot frantically moves its arms after a customer places an order on a kiosk. It makes pizza, espresso and even latte art. About eight minutes later, the gadget packages and gives the warm pizza and coffee to a customer.

Convenience store chains are going beyond mere amenities to expand to new levels. Branches with themes like entertainment, technology, sports and finance have emerged to transform such venues into interactive and play spaces.

Higher product competitiveness has driven more attention toward convenience stores. Seeing what customers buy the most there and what items are in short supply show the latest consumption trends at a glance. As word of mouth rapidly spreads on social media, the number of foreign tourists flocking to such stores is rising.

When analyzing payments by foreign consumers by year, the domestic convenience store chain CU found that their consumption in the country last year jumped 151.9% from 2022 and 150% this year from January to June year over year.

A robot on Nov. 29 makes pizza at GS25's tech-themed branch Ground Blue 49 in Seoul’s Jongno-gu District. (Xu Aiying)

Korea.net on Nov. 29 visited CU Music Library and GS25's Ground Blue 49, with both stores packed with tourists from around the world.

"I find it interesting to purchase K-pop albums and merchandise at a convenience store," Carmen Araceli Moreno from Mexico said. "I plan to visit GS25 Door to Seongsu (a themed pop-up convenience store in the Seongsu-dong neighborhood)."

"I dropped by to buy a drink and stayed longer, as I was captivated by the sight of a robot making pizzas," Chang Chee Kheong from Malaysia said. "Korean convenience stores not only offer a wide variety of food, but also entertainment and practical services such as currency exchange kiosks for tourists, so I visit them almost every day while traveling here."

The pro soccer club Ulsan HD FC and GS25 teamed up open the branch store GS25 Ulsan Big Crown, which specializes in sports, and CU opened its Snack Library at the chain's branch in T2 Incheon International Airport Transportation Center. (Ulsan HD FC and BGF Retail)  

As competition among convenience stores grows more intense, specialized branches are evolving. CU last year opened popular specialized stores such as Ramyun Library and Snack Library, while rival GS25 collaborated with the pro baseball teams Daejeon Hanwha Eagles and Seoul LG Twins and pro soccer's Ulsan HD FC to each run branches with a sports theme.

Joining the fray by opening stores specializing in fashion and beauty, 7-Eleven is using a strategy to raise the competitiveness of its offline stores while attracting more customers.

The success of such branches is apparent in the distribution landscape. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Nov. 26 said convenience stores took up 17.8% of the sector's sales in October, surpassing department stores with 17.2%.

Because convenience chains surpassed department stores in the third quarter, the former could emerge as an offline distribution power this year if this trend continues in the fourth.

Convenient stores are no longer just for buying and selling goods but also spaces for experiencing culture, technology and new things. Themed branches of such chains are thus helping spread Hallyu (Korean Wave) worldwide.

xuaiy@korea.kr