Emart store in Yeonsu District sees 18% surge in sales after renovation

Vice Chairman of Shinsegae Group Chung Yong-jin poses for a photo during his visit to a Emart store in Yeonsu District, Incheon, on May 3. [Photo by Han Joo-hyung]

The future of offline stores managed by South Korean retail giant Shinsegae Group lies on the “innovation of space” through focus and research on the customers, according to its Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin.

“We must be able to constantly attract customers to our stores,” Chung told employees during his visit to a discount store operated by Emart Inc. in Yeonsu District, Incheon, on Wednesday.

“The future of offline stores lies in space innovation through obsessive studies of customer behavior. The answers are always on the site where the customers are,” he added.

The Emart outlet in Yeonsu District saw a 18 percent on-year growth in sales in the first month between the end of March and end of April since the reopening following a store-wide renovation.

The store was also visited by 23 percent more customers during the same period.

“The renovation was quite an experiment as we gave up more than half of the space for the customers,” Chung said. “We were concerned at first that the revenue would fall but it didn’t.”

The Emart store in Yeonsu District reduced store space by more than half to 5,290 square meters from 12,562 square meters as part of interior renovation. The branch instead expanded space for gourmet restaurants and cultural-themed spaces, which attracted more customers.

Emart introduced a range of attractions, such as indoor smart farms, a butcher shop specializing in aged meat, and tuna sushi store.

The indoor smart farm, in particular, where the retailer grows and sells four types of greens is one of the highlights of the store.

After the renovation, the discount store saw overall sales of the deli section increase by 48 percent, fresh vegetables by 20 percent, fish by 23 percent, processed foods by 13 percent, and meat and poultry by 13 percent.