BGF breaks ground on Busan logistics center, aims to be export hub

Officials at the groundbreaking ceremony for BGF Retail’s new logistics center in Busan. [Courtesy of BGF Retail Co.]

BGF Retail, which operates South Korea’s largest convenience store chain CU, is set to construct a massive logistics center in Busan. The new facility aims to revamp the delivery system in the Yeongnam region while also serving as a strategic hub for exports.

BGF Retail held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new logistics center in the International Industrial Logistics Complex in Gangseo-gu, Busan, on Tuesday. Key figures at the event included BGF Chairman Hong Seok-joh, Vice Chairman Hong Jeong-kook, BGF Retail CEO Min Seung-bae, and other executives from BGF Group. Local officials, including Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon and Kim Ki-young, Commissioner of the Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone Authority, were also in attendance, bringing the total number of attendees to over 100.

The new BGF Retail logistics center will be constructed on a 47,000-square-meter site with a total floor area of 120,000 square meters. This makes it nearly twice the size of BGF Retail’s current central logistics center. The facility is slated to begin operations in the second half of 2026.

BGF Retail has invested 220 billion won ($164 million) in the construction of this logistics center, marking the largest logistics investment in the company’s history. The expansion comes as a response to the growing number of CU stores, necessitating the integration, expansion, and automation of the company’s logistics operations.

Equipped with state-of-the-art automation systems, the Busan logistics center will streamline the delivery system across the Yeongnam region. It is also set to function as a key export hub, facilitating the swift transport of goods to countries such as Mongolia, Malaysia, and Kazakhstan.

The Busan facility will feature advanced supply chain management (SCM) technology to increase the speed and accuracy of logistics operations, with automated systems handling everything from goods receipt to dispatch.