Baemin joins morning delivery race with 'Early Opening' as competition heats up

Competition in Korea’s early morning delivery market is heating up once again as e-commerce players like Naver and Baedal Minjok, or Baemin, join the fray, long dominated by Coupang and Kurly.

An advertisement for Coupang's Rocket Fresh delivery service [COUPANG]

Competition in Korea’s early morning delivery market is heating up once again as e-commerce players like Naver and Baedal Minjok, or Baemin, join the fray, long dominated by Coupang and Kurly.

Baemin operator Woowa Brothers said Wednesday it will expand its early-morning delivery service, or “Early Opening,” through its Baemin B Mart stores. The service will now be available in eight locations nationwide, with the addition of branches in Eunpyeong District, northern Seoul, Uijeongbu in Gyeonggi and Bupyeong District in Incheon.

Unlike the standard delivery service, which begins at 9 a.m., Early Opening enables customers to place orders for dairy products, baked goods, ready-made meals, meat and produce starting at 6 a.m., with average delivery times between 30 minutes to one hour.

Baemin has established around 70 small-scale, warehouse-type B Mart stores in major cities across Korea, including Seoul, Busan, Ulsan, Daejeon, Daegu and Cheonan. These stores stock goods in advance and deliver them upon order, offering items such as groceries, household essentials and small appliances. After launching the Early Opening service in March, Baemin is expanding it in response to strong customer demand.

“This service targets the early-morning shopping needs of office workers and parents,” a Baemin spokesperson said. “It also offers delivery riders a chance to earn additional income.” The company plans to eventually expand the service nationwide.

Industry insiders predict the competition in dawn delivery — as its referred to in Korea — will intensify.

“Consumers are already used to fast delivery, and the number of dual-income households with little time to shop is increasing,” said one industry insider. “Once customers start using early-morning delivery, they tend to purchase more products. It’s a must-have model.”

A poster for Baemin B Mart's early-morning delivery service [WOOWA BROTHERS]

Consumer satisfaction with early-morning delivery is also high. According to a report released June 10 by the Korea Consumer Agency, dawn delivery ranked first among 40 categories of goods and services in the agency’s 2024 consumer market evaluation index, scoring 71.8 points — surpassing hospital visits and airline services.

Kurly pioneered dawn delivery in Korea in 2015 with its “Saetbyeol” delivery service. Coupang joined the market in 2018, followed by SSG.com, Shinsegae Group’s e-commerce platform, in 2019.

Coupang became the first major retailer to establish logistics infrastructure on Jeju Island in February, expanding its dawn delivery zone — or “Coupang-accessible zone.”

SSG.com, which had focused on the Seoul metropolitan area using its own logistics, expanded nationwide last year by partnering with CJ Logistics.

Naver is also preparing to launch its own dawn delivery service later this year, on the heels of a restructuring of its logistics business in February.

A poster for SSG.com's early-morning delivery service [SHINSEGAE]

But as more players enter the market, concerns about cutthroat competition are growing. Early-morning delivery services typically have higher labor costs and require significant investments in cold-chain infrastructure and inventory management. In 2022, major retail firms like Lotte ON and BGF Retail exited the market due to profitability concerns.

“Though the cost is high, the demand makes it an unavoidable venture,” said an industry insider. “Only companies with distinct product competitiveness will survive.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff. BY HWANG SOO-YEON [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]