Lotte online, offline retailers to introduce third-party advertising

Lotte Retail HQ announced that all Lotte affiliates will utilize retail media network infrastructure in a bid to bolster revenue.

Lotte Retail HQ employees discuss the upcoming Retail Media Network business. [LOTTE RETAIL HQ]

Lotte's retail affiliates will enter the so-called retail media network (RMN) business to leverage their online and offline spaces for third-party advertising.

Lotte Retail HQ said Thursday that Lotte Department Store, Lotte Mart, Lotte On and 7-Eleven convenience stores will adopt the advertising infrastructure to expand their revenue stream. Lotte Retail HQ is an organization that provides management and support to Lotte’s many retail subsidiaries.

Many U.S.-based e-commerce and retail businesses, including Amazon, Walmart, eBay and Target have been using RMN but the concept is still new to Korean retailers. Coupang and Shinsegae are known for using RMN to raise their revenues.

The upcoming platform will provide a platform for the 40 e-commerce sites and applications of Lotte's retail businesses on top of the 15,000 or so offline stores.

“Lotte Retail HQ’s RMN business will use its online and offline user traffic data to provide a system that is different from the existing RMN businesses,” the company said in a press release.

Lotte explained that advertisers, instead of having to sign an individual contract with each outlet, would have one contract covering all the group’s retail outlets.

“The system will also offer a more accurate and cost-effective targeting solution by analyzing behavioral trends of consumers.”

Lotte Retail HQ signed a memorandum of understanding with marketing and advertisement technology solution company Epsilon to co-develop Lotte’s RMN system in August.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]