Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam Store, which has held the top spot for annual sales (transaction volume) among domestic department stores for 10 consecutive years, is projected to achieve mid-4 trillion won in sales this year, securing its position as the world's second-largest store. This is attributed to increased demand for luxury goods among VIP customers and a significant rise in foreign visitors and young customers in their 20s and 30s, driven by the popularity of K-content, which also led to a substantial increase in fashion and food & beverage sales.
According to the retail industry on the 17th, Shinsegae Gangnam Store's first-half sales growth rate reached over 20%, significantly outpacing the national average growth rate of 14% across all stores.
Having recorded sales of 3.67 trillion won last year, if Shinsegae Gangnam Store maintains a sales growth rate in the 20s range for the second half following the first half, its estimated annual sales are projected to reach approximately 4.4 to 4.5 trillion won. Considering that department store sales typically show higher figures in the second half compared to the first half, there are also expectations of achieving 'surprise earnings' exceeding these estimates.
Shinsegae Gangnam Store surpassed Lotte Department Store's main branch, which had held the top sales position for 38 years since 1979, becoming the domestic sales leader for the first time in 2017 with 1.6621 trillion won. It was also the first to enter the 2nd trillion won era in 2019 and the 3rd trillion won era in 2023. The milestone of achieving its first annual sales of 4 trillion won is expected to be reached by mid-November.
Currently, the global No. 1 store is Harrods London in the UK with sales in the 4.8 trillion won range, while the second-ranked store is Isetan Shinjuku in Japan with sales in the 4.3 trillion won range. If Shinsegae Gangnam Store achieves mid-4 trillion won in sales this year, it could surpass Isetan Shinjuku and leap into the 'global top two' stores.
Shinsegae Gangnam Store boasts the largest luxury brand lineup among single domestic store locations. The surge in K-content popularity has also led to a significant increase in foreign visitors. In the first half of this year alone, customers from over 120 countries visited Shinsegae Gangnam Store. By being designated as Korea's first tourism special zone encompassing the Han River and adding gourmet content, it has established itself as a global shopping hub. At the same time, it is also evaluated as having successfully diversified its customer base to include young customers in their 20s and 30s through trendy F&B content and pop-up stores based on fan communities.
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