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Tag: Coupang

  • Coupang Surpasses $8 Billion Mark: Record Revenue And Profit Turnaround Amid Taiwan Expansion

    Coupang Surpasses $8 Billion Mark: Record Revenue And Profit Turnaround Amid Taiwan Expansion

    South Korean retail behemoth Coupang has experienced substantial growth this year, boasting a record revenue of $8.52 billion in Q2, a rise of 19% year-over-year with an FX-neutral basis. This marks the first time the company has surpassed the $8 billion mark.

    Additionally, Coupang achieved a net profit of $31 million, a significant turnaround from last year’s Q2 deficit of $105 million. The company’s adjusted EBITDA hit $428 million.

    Core Strengths

    Coupang’s primary source of income comes from its Product Commerce sector, which encompasses Rocket Delivery, Rocket Fresh, Rocket Growth, and the marketplace. The adjusted EBITDA for this segment climbed to $663 million, and margins reached an unprecedented 9%.

    Most of the revenue growth in Q2 came from existing customers. According to Bom Kim, Coupang’s founder and CEO, even the oldest customer cohorts demonstrated robust spending increases in the double digits.

    Kim stated, “As we expand our selection to match customer preferences, they’re also purchasing across a broader number of categories.”

    The Rocket Delivery model, previously criticized for its extravagant spending and capital intensity, is now viewed as a competitive advantage. Same-day and dawn delivery volumes soared over 40% year-over-year, primarily due to the addition of over half a million new Rocket SKUs in Q2.

    Taiwan’s Progress

    Coupang’s Developing Offerings segment, which encompasses Taiwan Rocket Delivery, Coupang Eats, Coupang Play, and Farfetch, posted a revenue of $1.19 billion, an increase of 33% year-over-year. Although this unit is still not profitable, with an adjusted EBITDA loss of $235 million, a majority of this loss can be attributed to increased investment in Taiwan.

    Coupang’s CFO, Gaurav Anand, noted that Taiwan is the main reason behind a revised full-year EBITDA loss prediction for the segment, estimated to be between $900 million and $950 million.

    Coupang launched its Wow membership program in Taiwan in March, targeting a population of 23 million and a retail sector valued at $152.7 billion. Since entering the market in 2022, the company has invested approximately $355 million in expanding its logistics infrastructure and product selection.

    This investment appears to be producing early results, with Taiwan’s revenue surging 54% quarter-over-quarter and recording triple-digit growth year-over-year. These improvements are not only due to customer acquisition but also improved customer retention and spending.

    Kim commented, “Our Taiwan offering is growing faster and stronger than even the most optimistic forecasts we set at the beginning of the year.” He added that they see a similar growth trajectory in Taiwan as they did in the early years of scaling their retail offering in Korea.

    Despite initial concerns, Coupang’s aggressive investment indicates growing belief that Taiwan could become a second profitable market in the long term.

    While Taiwan’s progress overshadows other areas, Coupang’s other businesses continue to develop. Food delivery service Coupang Eats showed continuous double-digit growth, benefiting from the company’s established logistics infrastructure.

    Additionally, Coupang Play, its streaming platform, has added new features like a Sports Pass, providing access to premium sports leagues ranging from the Premier League to Nascar.

    Although these businesses are not yet profitable, they help to retain users within the Coupang ecosystem.

    Looking forward, Coupang faces significant challenges. The South Korean retail sector has been declining for 13 consecutive quarters – the longest recorded downturn. With limited room for further growth at home, the company’s future hinges on maximizing each customer’s value or finding new customers abroad. Taiwan is off to a strong start, but expanding it into a second growth engine may prove challenging, and the level of investment required could test investor patience if results don’t keep up the pace.

    Questions & Answers

    What contributed to the growth of Coupang’s Q2 revenue?
    Existing customers contributed to most of the growth, with spending increases across all cohorts. Additionally, the company expanded its product selection, leading to customers buying across a wider range of categories.

    What is the role of Taiwan in Coupang’s financial strategy?
    Taiwan is a significant focus for Coupang’s investment, aimed at expanding its market beyond South Korea. The company’s aggressive investment in Taiwan indicates a growing belief that it could become a second profitable market in the long term.

    What challenges does Coupang face moving forward?
    Coupang is challenged by the continuous decline in the South Korean retail sector. With limited potential for domestic growth, the company’s future success increasingly relies on maximizing value from each customer and expanding its customer base abroad. Additionally, the level of investment required in markets like Taiwan could test investor patience if results don’t match the pace of investment.

  • Coupang fined US$102 million for manipulating search algorithm

    Coupang fined US$102 million for manipulating search algorithm

    South Korea’s antitrust regulator has fined e-commerce giant Coupang 140 billion won (US$102 million) for using unfair search algorithms and manipulating product reviews to boost sales of its own private-label items.

    The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) also referred the company, as well as one of its subsidiaries, Coupang Private Label Brands (CPLB), to the prosecution for further investigation and ordered the companies to take corrective measures.

    Coupang has used” deceptive algorithms” according to the FTC, giving them greater exposure to the retailer’s private-label products on its platform ahead of those from other suppliers since February 2019.

    By doing so, at least 64,250 kinds of products have been prioritised, which caused the total sales of such items to soar over 76 per cent during the period.

    The company also had 2297 employees write positive product reviews of private-label products since 2019 in an effort to boost its sales.

    They wrote a combined 72,614 reviews of 7342 kinds of private brand items so far, which helped those products to be exposed more easily in violation of the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act.

    “Such practices have prevented customers from making reasonable choices and hampered fair market competition,” the FTC said, vowing stern responses to such unfair business practices.

    Established in July 2020, CPLB is Coupang’s subsidiary in charge of selling private brand items.

  • Coupang launches overseas direct purchase service in Japan

    Coupang launches overseas direct purchase service in Japan

    Coupang customers in South Korea can now directly purchase products from Japan, thanks to the e-commerce platform’s expansion of its overseas direct purchase service.

    With Japanese products now available through the Rocket Jikgu direct purchase service, customers can now purchase food from brands such as Nissin, Meiji, LeTao, and AGF, and beauty items from brands such as Senka, Bioré, Fino, Tsubaki and P&G Japan.

    The platform will also offer home improvement brands Ishida and Joseph Joseph and stationery products from Zebra, Mitsubishi, and Pentel.

    The company first launched Rocket Jikgu in the US in 2017 and has expanded the direct purchase service since.

    The South Korean online retailing giant has then added China to its Rocket Jikgu network in 2021 and Hong Kong in 2022.

    Last year, the Japanese overseas direct purchase market grew by 11 percent, with food purchases surging about 45 percent.

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  • Coupang launches luxury beauty shopping service Rocket Luxury

    Coupang launches luxury beauty shopping service Rocket Luxury

    South Korea’s top e-commerce retailer Coupang said Monday it has launched a new service allowing customers to buy luxury beauty brands’ products at its platform.

    At Rocket Luxury, customers will be able to purchase products of 16 high-end beauty brands from home and abroad, including Estee Lauder, MAC, Bobby Brown, and Hera, directly bought by Coupang.

    The products will be delivered through the “rocket delivery” service, which offers delivery service within 24 hours upon order.

    For members of Coupang’s paid subscription service, Wow, the company will provide free delivery and free return service.

    “Customers who use luxury beauty brands will be able to buy at Rocket Luxury with trust as it only provides genuine products certified by Coupang,” Lee Byeong-hee, the head of Coupang’s retail division, said.

  • Coupang to exit Japan to focus on Korea, Taiwan

    Coupang to exit Japan to focus on Korea, Taiwan

    Coupang has decided to withdraw its e-commerce business from Japan, 21 months after it began offering its online delivery service there, a company official said Sunday.

    “After testing our service as a pilot version, we have decided to withdraw our business from Japan,” a Coupang Japan official said.

    The Japanese daily, Nikkei, reported Saturday that Korea’s largest e-commerce firm will terminate its delivery service for fresh food and daily necessities in Meguro and Setagaya, Tokyo, on March 21.

    The company has been operating a quick commerce service that delivers online customer purchases within 10 minutes in the two cities.

    It has been selling nearly 5,000 grocery items on its shopping platform in partnership with local department store, Takashimaya and the dollar-store, Daiso.

    However, local consumers find Coupang’s service less attractive because Japan already has a strong convenience store business culture.

    Also, Japan has, by far, the highest senior population in the world and many of them are not used to shopping for groceries online. About 29.1 percent of its people are over 65 years old, according to Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications’ data, which was released in September 2022.

    Instead, Coupang said it will focus its businesses on Korea and Taiwan.

    The e-commerce firm introduced its Rocket Delivery service for Taiwanese customers last October. It provides local consumers the choice of buying hundreds of Korean items online through the direct-purchase service.

    Taiwan has a high population density and is an ideal environment to run an e-commerce business. Taiwanese consumers are also very interested in Korean products due to the influence of Korean popular culture.

    Coupang headquarters in Seoul confirmed the withdrawal of its business from Japan, but declined to comment further on the issue.

    Meanwhile, Coupang achieved record-high sales of 26 trillion won ($19.6 billion) last year. In the third quarter of 2022, the company turned out a surplus for the first time in eight years with its Rocket Delivery service.

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  • Coupang Swings to Profit in Q3, the First Since 2014

    Coupang Swings to Profit in Q3, the First Since 2014

    E-commerce giant Coupang said Thursday it swung to the black in the third quarter for the first time since 2014, when it introduced its ultra-fast delivery service, Rocket Delivery.

    Net income came to $90.7 million in the July-September period, compared with a net loss of $324 million during the same period of last year, the New York-listed e-commerce titan said in a regulatory filing.

    Coupang’s operating profit came to $77.4 million, marking the first positive figure since 2014. The e-commerce giant logged an operating loss of $67.14 million in the previous quarter.

    Sales grew 10 percent on-year to $5.1 billion in the third quarter.

    Coupang said sales of its product commerce division, which includes its Rocket Delivery service, also advanced 10 percent from a year earlier to $49.5 billion.

    The number of active customers inched up on-year by 7 percent, though the increase in spending per customer was slightly lower at 3 percent.

    The top line of its new business areas, including the food delivery service Coupang Eats and video streaming service Coupang Play, inched down 6 percent from a year earlier to $154.2 million.

    The company attributed its first net profit and operating income since 2014 to improved profitability, stemming from its continued investments in tech and efforts to optimize supply chain and business processes.

    The e-commerce behemoth said its adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) came to $195 million, compared with a deficit of $207.4 million last year.

    Coupang made its landmark debut on the New York stock market last year in an effort to expand its global presence.

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  • Coupang Q2 revenue soars on active customer growth

    Coupang Q2 revenue soars on active customer growth

    South Korean e-commerce company Coupang has reported surging revenues and profits on higher active customers during its 15th consecutive quarter of growth above 50 percent.

    But the company is still battling to stem losses thanks to investment into new business activities.

    Total net revenues rose 71 percent on a reported basis, or 57 percent on a constant-currency basis with the number of active customers up 26 percent year over year to 17 million.

    Revenue per active customer grew 36 percent.

    Coupang reported a gross profit of US$658 million, which would have been higher but for $158 million in inventory write-offs as a result of a fire at its Deokpyeong fulfillment center in Korea.

    Revenue from its Rocket Fresh division more than doubled, exceeding $2 billion, while the company’s Eats revenue nearly tripled during the past two quarters, with the loss per order down by more than 50 per cent year on year.

    Investments in Rocket Fresh and Eats accounted for almost the entire pre-tax loss of $122 million for the quarter, which the company said highlighted the profitability of its more mature business operations.

    In March, Coupang was valued at around US$109 billion after the company raised around $4.6 billion in its US IPO.

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  • Coupang faces probe into unfair trade practices

    Coupang faces probe into unfair trade practices

    After stoking a series of controversies, including a fire at a logistics centre and poor working conditions, South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang is now facing a government investigation into alleged unfair trading practices.

    The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) recently noted that Coupang might have violated the Fair Trade Law and carried out a field investigation at Coupang’s headquarters in Songpa-gu in Seoul late last month.

    Coupang has allegedly manipulated its search algorithm to make its private-label products more visible than the products of other suppliers.

    The company manipulated the algorithm towards prioritizing and placing its private-label products at the top of the search results while placing other products at the bottom.

    The antitrust regulator is also investigating whether Coupang conducted ‘gapjil’ against suppliers. Gapjil is a Korean term referring to power harassment and abuse of power.

    Coupang has allegedly required suppliers to offer their products at the lowest price and penalized those who refused to supply their products at a lower price than the supply price for other platforms.

    In the field investigation, the KFTC checked the allegations that Coupang forced suppliers to purchase advertising space and excluded those who refused to do so from various benefits, including the company’s rocket delivery service.

    Another allegation was that Coupang unfairly returned products to suppliers.

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  • SoftBank-backed Coupang raises $4.2 billion in US IPO

    SoftBank-backed Coupang raises $4.2 billion in US IPO

    Coupang LLC, South Korea’s largest e-commerce company, raised $4.2 billion in the biggest share offering in the United States this year after selling stocks in the IPO above its deal target range, people familiar with the matter said.

    The initial public offering price of $35 apiece, higher than the marketing range $32-$34 per share, gives Seoul-headquartered Coupang, which is backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp, a market value of $60 billion.

    Coupang’s successful share offering comes as the U.S. IPO market is at its strongest in more than two decades and investors are flocking to buy shares in technology companies that have benefited during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The IPO is the biggest in the United States this year, surpassing the $2.15 billion raised by dating app Bumble Inc. It also marks a jump in Coupang’s valuation, which was pegged at $9 billion in a fundraising round in 2018, according to Pitchbook.

    Analysts in South Korea said the strong response to Coupang’s offering was a result of its market-leader position in the country at a time when, like many other e-commerce firms, its sales have grown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “Considering the high level of valuation inherent in the pricing, the market is giving a generous assessment of the company’s achieving the top spot in market share,” said Park Sang-joon, analyst at Kiwoom Securities.

    Coupang was the top-ranked South Korean e-commerce firm in 2020 with 19.2% market share, according to Euromonitor, compared to Naver Corp’s 13.6% and eBay Korea’s 12.8%. It was the 10th largest e-commerce firm in the world, based on retail value excluding sales tax.

    In 2020, Coupang’s net sales jumped 91% year-on-year to $11 billion. Net losses narrowed to $567.6 million from $770.2 million posted in the prior year.

    Founded in 2010 by Korean-American billionaire Bom Suk Kim, Coupang rose to prominence after launching its guaranteed same-day or next-day delivery service in the East Asian country. SoftBank’s $100 billion Vision Fund owns 35.1% of Coupang.

    Achieving a $60 billion valuation would add to good news for the Vision Fund, which is bouncing back from an annual loss in March. Last month, it announced record quarterly profit.

    The company’s shares will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday under the symbol “CPNG.”

    Goldman Sachs, Allen & Co, JPMorgan and Citigroup are the lead underwriters for the offering.

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  • SoftBank-backed Coupang reveals revenue surge ahead of US IPO

    SoftBank-backed Coupang reveals revenue surge ahead of US IPO

    South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang, backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp, on Friday filed to go public on the New York Stock Exchange, hoping to cash in on strong demand for high-growth tech stocks as it reported a near-doubling of annual revenue and narrowing losses.

    Coupang is aiming for a valuation of around $50 billion in its U.S. initial public offering (IPO), according to a person familiar with the matter.

    This would make it the largest IPO in New York by a company based outside the United States since Alibaba Group Holding in 2014, Dealogic data showed.

    Founded in 2010 by Harvard graduate Bom Kim, Coupang made a splash in Korea with its ‘Rocket Delivery’ service, which promised delivery within 24 hours, shaking family-owned retail conglomerates such as Shinsegae and Lotte.

    Coupang was valued at $9 billion in its last private fundraising round in 2018, according to data provider PitchBook.

    In a regulatory filing, Coupang said total revenue jumped 91% in 2020 to $11.97 billion, while net losses narrowed to $474.9 million from $698.8 million.

    The company, viewed as a rival in South Korea to e-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc, received $1 billion in funding from SoftBank in 2015 and $2 billion from its Vision Fund in 2018.

    Coupang’s other investors include BlackRock Inc, the world’s largest asset manager, venture capital firm Sequoia Capital and billionaire investor Bill Ackman.

    The U.S. IPO market is at its strongest in more than two decades, and investors are flocking to buy shares in technology companies that have benefited during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Coupang plans to list under the symbol “CPNG”. It has yet to provide a target asking price for its shares.

    Goldman Sachs, Allen & Co, JP Morgan, BofA Securities and Citigroup are among the underwriters.

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  • Uniqlo, Coupang, Daiso weigh cost as Japan boycott grows

    Uniqlo, Coupang, Daiso weigh cost as Japan boycott grows

    Casual-clothing chain Uniqlo says its sales have been affected as the consumer boycott of Japanese goods intensifies in South Korea.

    Uniqlo, owned by Fast Retailing, will close a downtown Seoul store soon, but says this is due to a decision not to renew a lease rather than the Japan boycott as reported by Japanese news media.

    Uniqlo has close to 190 stores in South Korea where it sells around US$1.3 billion of clothes annually, accounting for 6.6 percent of its revenue.

    Meanwhile, the boycott is leaving some South Korean companies that some consumers have labeled as “Japanese companies” struggling to explain themselves.

    South Korean consumers are boycotting Japanese products from beer to pens in protest over Japan’s decision to impose restrictions on exports of key high-tech materials to its Asian neighbor. While Japan cited security concerns for the curbs, the move also been seen as retaliation after a South Korean court last year ordered Japanese companies to compensate Koreans who were forced to work for Japanese occupiers during World War Two.

    Japan has also removed South Korea from a list of favored trading partners.

    “It is not easy to clear up the misunderstanding as there are some complicated cases of stake relationships that are confusing even to consumers,” wrote D M Park of Korea Bizwire.

    For example, Daiso, a flat-priced household goods company run by Asung Daiso, has been dogged by constant attacks from some consumers saying it is a “Japanese company” since the beginning of the boycott campaign.

    Daiso originally started in May 1997 when Park Jung-won, a former office worker, opened a household goods store called “Asco Even Plaza” in Seoul. In November 2001, the company changed its name to Daiso Asung in cooperation with Daechang Co, a Japanese distributor of flat-price goods. Daiso is the Japanese pronunciation of Daechang. It later registered as a foreign-invested company under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act in March 2002.

    Currently, Park holds 50.02 percent of Asung HMP, the largest shareholder, while Japan’s Daechang Industrial holds 34.21 percent of the shares.

    The problem is that Japanese companies own more than 30 percent of the shares, and Japan also has more than 2900 stores of the same mutual, uniform price household goods company run by Daechang Industrial.

    “There is no relationship between Japan’s Daiso, Japan’s payment of royalties, personnel exchanges, nor participation in management except for equity investments,” stressed a representative of Asung Daiso.

    “Samsung Electronics also has a high foreign stake, but that does not make Samsung a foreign company,” the representative said.

    Coupang, a leading e-commerce company, also suffered from rumors that it was a Japanese company after Japan’s Softbank Vision Fund (SVF) made equity investments.

    Although Coupang, an unlisted company, has never made its exact stake public, industry sources estimate that SVF’s stake in Coupang will exceed 30 percent.

    Coupang responded quickly through its own promotional channel as such rumors spread quickly in the early days of the boycott and showed signs of affecting sales as well.

    “Foreign ownership of KB Financial Group is close to 70 percent, while foreign ownership of Samsung and Naver is also close to 60 percent,” Coupang explained.

    Coupang then laid out the similar logic of Daiso that high foreign investment in shares does not mean that a company is a foreign company, hoping to overcome impact from the Japan boycott.

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  • Coupang, HP Korea sign MOU to strengthen sales

    Coupang, HP Korea sign MOU to strengthen sales

    E-commerce company Coupang said Thursday it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with HP Korea Wednesday to strengthen sales channels for the technology company’s products. Through the agreement, Coupang will directly acquire HP products from the company, providing customers with better deals. HP Korea will also ensure faster delivery times and improve product services. The two companies plan to cooperate on online marketing and advertisements.

    James Lee, Coupang’s senior director, said, “By establishing long-term partnerships, [Coupang] will work harder to expand cooperative businesses.”

    Coupang currently offers a range of HP products, such as its gaming PCs and printers through its fast “rocket delivery” service.

  • Trends that coming in 2019 e-commerce

    Trends that coming in 2019 e-commerce

    Led by transformation in sales channels and customer demand, consumer trends for 2019 will center on subscription e-commerce, faster delivery, and eco-packaging, according to market experts. Subscription e-commerce, a field of business that involves curating products and delivering them on a regular basis, has been gaining popularity because it meets needs for tailored services, value, and convenience. From clean, neatly ironed business shirts to craft beers, you can get almost anything through a subscription service — now, even a car.

    Earlier this month, Hyundai Motor’s Genesis introduced a car subscription program that offers subscribers a choice of four Genesis vehicles for 1.49 million won (US$1,330) per month.

    “Our target group is drivers who want to experience a different variety of vehicle without having to worry about car management. The ultimate goal of our subscription program is to satisfy consumer needs amid shifting mobility trends,” Hyundai Motor said.

    According to industry data, subscriber-based businesses are undergoing an explosive expansion, having grown from 241 trillion won in 2000 to 470 trillion won in 2015, globally. Industry experts expect that number to surpass 594 trillion won by 2020.

    McKinsey & Company said in its “State of Fashion 2019” report that the subscription trend goes hand in hand with users’ desire for experiences, as they are more willing to spend money for a service that delivers tangible benefits along with personalized offerings.

    Meanwhile, over the past year, delivery has gotten faster for merchandise purchased via websites and apps. With services like Coupang’s Rocket Delivery, expecting one’s purchase to arrive the next day has become the new norm.

    Cutting down even further on delivery times will be a major sticking point for e-commerce businesses looking to stay afloat, market insiders said, with businesses now competing to ensure overnight deliveries, particularly of fresh food items.

    Overnight delivery is usually available only in Seoul and some parts of Gyeonggi Province and Incheon for now. Experts estimate that the market value of the industry will have reached 400 billion won this year.

    Lotte Mart currently plans to test-operate a 30-minute delivery service in the first quarter of the new year. Since September, it has offered a delivery service that moves products from its stores within three hours after purchase at an offline store.

    E-commerce company Coupang also plans to make a concerted effort to expand the overnight and even same-day delivery of fresh food products in 2019.

    “Our latest paid membership service, Rocket Wow club, which guarantees next-morning delivery for signed-up members, had already garnered almost 1 million members just two months after the service’s launch. We plan to expand the service to cover all customers across the country in the new year,” a Coupang representative said.

    The environmental packaging boom is set to continue well into 2019 as well. While plastic is not inherently bad, the way it is thrown away is problematic. As a result, an increasing number of consumers are rethinking their plastic use in an effort to cut waste.

    With environmental packaging campaigns spreading worldwide, manufacturers have been challenged to innovate their packaging methods.

    Since September, Starbucks Korea has replaced plastic straws with paper straws at some 100 of its stores in Seoul, Busan and Jeju, in an effort to reduce waste and protect the environment. All its paper straws are coated with soybean oil to make them more durable, the company said.

    The coffee franchise plans to eliminate single-use plastic straws from its 28,000 stores worldwide by 2020. Angel-in-us Coffee, the cafe chain operated by South Korean retail giant Lotte, also introduced special lids for cold drinks in an effort to reduce plastic use.

    “The throwaway culture is rapidly being challenged by increasing consumer awareness of the perils of plastic waste. A dramatic change in attitudes has occurred, forcing brands to rethink how they make better use of plastic in what they offer to consumers, who increasingly demand brands reduce, reuse and recycle plastic waste to better protect them and their world,” said Matthew Crabbe, a director of Trends APAC, in Global Consumer Trend report by Mintel.

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  • Coupang to become an authorized Apple retailer

    Coupang to become an authorized Apple retailer

    Coupang, Korea’s top e-commerce platform, has been selected as an authorized retailer to sell Apple products, the company announced Friday. It said that the e-commerce giant was selected to become an authorized reseller of Apple products, and the service will begin sometime this month. The products that will be offered include iPad Pros, MacBooks and Apple Watches, as well as related accessories.

    Coupang said that its shoppers can get access to Apple products that carry a full Apple warranty and come with after-sales customer services from Apple.

    “Coupang will be an attractive purchase channel for customers who love or want to experience Apple products,” said Navid Veiseh, Coupang’s senior vice president of global e-commerce. “We will continue to expand the range of premium electronics brands like Apple, which, when combined with our Rocket delivery and RocketPay services, make Coupang the first place for customers to turn when shopping for premium electronics.”

    Coupang is known for its fast Rocket delivery service that sends items purchased the following day.

  • Thai flagship store opened in Coupang

    Thai flagship store opened in Coupang

    South Korean e-commerce firm Coupang is planning to launch a flagship store in Thailand to boost the online sales of Thai-sourced products. Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce has been promoting Thai products on the platform since August, which has brought in more than THB118 million (US$3.57 million) for mostly food and beverage items. The ministry has just met with Coupang executives to seal an agreement to expand cooperation, resulting in the establishment of a Thai Mall on the platform.

    It is expected that the new partnership could result in an increase in sales to more than THB 200 million (US$6.06 million) over the coming year, a rise in export volumes to Korea by 7 per cent. Thailand’s total exports to South Korea were valued at $4.66 billion last year, an increase of 14.4 per cent from the year previous.

    Commerce Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong said “South Koreans know Thai brands from travelling here”, with 1.5 million of them visiting Thailand annually.

    Coupang is South Korea’s largest and fastest-growing e-commerce firm. It recently received an investment of US$2 billion from the SoftBank Vision Fund. It offers more than 120 million items for sale and 4 million available for guaranteed one-day delivery.

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