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Tag: Korea

  • Korean startup translates dog barks using AI

    Korean startup translates dog barks using AI

    A South Korean startup has developed an AI-powered dog collar that can detect five emotions in canines by monitoring their barks using voice recognition technology.

    The Petpuls collar can tell pet owners through a smartphone application if their dogs are happy, relaxed, anxious, angry or sad. It also tracks dogs’ physical activity and rest.

    “This device gives a dog a voice so that humans can understand,” Andrew Gil, director of global marketing at Petpuls Lab said.

    The company began gathering different types of barks to analyse dogs’ emotions in 2017. Three years later, they developed a proprietary algorithm based on a database of more than 10,000 samples from 50 breeds of dogs.

    “I thought she was just happy when she played and felt sad and anxious when I wasn’t home…actually she felt angry when she lost a game she played with me, like how humans feel,” said Moon Sae-mi, who has a six-year-old Border Collie.

    The collar has a 90 percent average accuracy rate of emotional recognition, according to Seoul National University, which tested the device the company says is the first of its kind to be powered by AI voice recognition technology.

    Petpuls Lab started marketing the collar online in October last year at $99.

    The global pet care market was worth $138 billion in 2020, up 34 percent, Euromonitor data showed, as more people spent time at home with their pets or adopted pets during the COVID-19 pandemic. The global dog population also grew 18% the same year to 489 million.

    “More people began to adopt dogs, but unfortunately some of them abandoned their dogs due to miscommunication,” Gil said. “Petpuls can have an important role in the pandemic…it helps owners understand how dogs feel and increase their bonding.”

  • How new player joined Vietnam’s food delivery battle

    How new player joined Vietnam’s food delivery battle

    Joining the market later than competitors, Baemin, a food delivery application of South Korean unicorn Woowa Brothers, concentrates on rider training and supporting food stores.

    Tuan, 28, from HCMC, is on his way to the headquarter of Baemin in District 3 to take part in a training course. He said, by the end of the course, he would have had to take an entrance exam before being granted an account as a Baemin rider. Before that, during the online application process, Tuan also had to undergo a pre-qualification exam before attending the intensive training.

    Most riders joining the Baemin network have to pass two entrance exams, a paradox compared to other food delivery businesses today.

    “We want to leave a good first impression on our customers with Baemin’s well-mannered and polite rider team,” said Nguyen Trung Thanh, COO of Baemin Vietnam, Woowa Brothers’ leading online food delivery service.

    Right after taking the lead in South Korea, Woowa Brothers expanded its market to Vietnam, where more than 40 percent of the population is of working age, loves technology and is quite familiar with Korean culture. However, Baemin still joined the Vietnamese market later than many other competitors.

    The boom in delivery applications has resulted in a shortage of riders and problems with service quality. Therefore, Baemin chose its own path by starting with careful training of its rider team in each market then gradually expanding within the city where the demand for food delivery is up to 90 percent (according to market research company GComm).

    Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are two typical examples of Baemin’s approach. “In Vietnam, FoodTech is still a very new market, so companies in this field have to invest a lot in building their own delivery team and putting them into operation,” Thanh noted.

    Baemin focuses on building professional food delivery services, its professionalism helping it succeed in a short period.

    According to a recent survey, although Baemin only appeared in Vietnam from mid-2019, it quickly caught up with Gojek, another application in food delivery, in its proportion of users (up to 46 percent). Baemin also takes up 16 percent among the most frequently used apps.

    According to the report, GrabFood is said to be popular among the old while Baemin suits younger generations.

    Investing in rider partners is not enough in Baemin’s long-term development strategy in Vietnam.

    “In Korea, where third-party logistics infrastructure is already developed, Woowa Brothers focuses on customer care, advertising and tradition,” said Thanh.

    “However, in Vietnam, it is a completely different story.”

    In addition to delivery resources, Baemin also has to pay attention to connecting with partners participating in its platform by providing flexible payment methods, with the most important being accompanying partners in the transition of the business model into an online format.

    According to Thanh, in new markets like Vietnam, restaurants, and stores, especially traditional ones, are yet to grow accustomed to online sales. Thus, during this period, the most practical thing is generating a revenue stream.

    Baemin’s strategy is to send staff to guide restaurant owners on how to achieve greater profits. At the same time, the company has also developed a department to timely respond and make payments so restaurant owners could continue to operate.

    “These are very basic steps, but they create real value from which the restaurant has the confidence to establish a closer relationship with us,” Thanh emphasized.

    In the coming time, Baemin plans to help restaurant owners create products suited to online business models. According to Thanh, this would allow transformation from a pure traditional restaurant to an online model in order to gradually expand with increasing revenue.

    “More than anyone, Baemin understands that the success or failure of a company depends greatly on its partners. Although Baemin is newly launched in Hanoi, brand awareness of customers here is much higher than in Ho Chi Minh City. It may be a new city, but the market has heard a lot about us,” Thanh said.

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  • South Korea Gets New Solar Panel Covered Bike Lane

    South Korea Gets New Solar Panel Covered Bike Lane

    Last year, we got to know about the SolaRoad in the Netherlands where the road was replaced by solar panels and its infrastructure was self-sufficient to power the lighting system of the highway. Now there’s a new highway in South Korea that runs between Daejon and Sejong and its entire bike lane on the 32 km stretch is covered with solar roof panels. These panels not only generate electricity but also protect cyclists from the sun and other vehicles on the highway.

    The two-way bike lane runs between both cities and is constructed right in the middle of the lanes, while there are three lanes for vehicles to travel on both sides. Furthermore, the lane is divided by the side barriers that block the view of the surrounding road and also obstructs high beam lights of oncoming vehicles. The vehicles are still visible on the medium strip but you don’t get the entire view of the opposite lane.

    These lanes generate more than enough electricity to power the lighting and the charging sockets for electric cars. The stretch is a new innovation in civil engineering and while it connects Daejon and Sejong like any other highway, it does so in a much efficient and safer manner.

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  • How art and apps drove growth for K11 malls

    How art and apps drove growth for K11 malls

    How art and apps drove growth for K11 malls – before and after pandemic. Revenge consumption has helped K11 shopping centres across Mainland China and Hong Kong flourish in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic as the company worked to attract customers back to spending mode – and away from rival malls.

  • Korea’s Emart set to scale back in Vietnam

    Korea’s Emart set to scale back in Vietnam

    South Korea’s largest supermarket chain operator Emart Inc. is pulling out of Vietnam, the second major Asian market after China, in the face of regulatory hurdles.

    The retailer opened its first outlet in Vietnam’s Go Vap district in 2015 and had procured a site at Ho Chi Minh City for a second opening last year. But the project has been delayed due to licensing setbacks, disrupting its plans to open five to six more outposts.

    Emart’s direct foray has proven difficult as Vietnam, like China, prioritizes joint ventures in permitting a foreign business. Emart started operation in Vietnam in 2014 after setting up a wholly-owned local entity.

    A retail industry source said a hypermarket needs at least 10 outlets to have bargaining power with vendors and maintain logistics efficiency. Unable to meet this number, Emart may have concluded it was better to fold the business, the source added.

    The retailer has been rolling back investments in the country. In its 2019 semiannual report, it had vowed to invest 460 billion won ($424.3 million) in its Vietnamese entity through 2022. But it had slashed that amount to 247.8 billion won in the third-quarter report.

    An Emart representative, however, denied the exit rumors and said it was studying other options such as strategic alliance or business partnership.

    Industry observers believe Emart is wary of making the same mistake as in its Chinese operation.

    Emart entered China in 1997 and aggressively expanded its operations, running at one point 26 outlets across the country. But it failed to overcome Beijing’s stiff regulations and saw losses snowball to 150 billion won over four years from 2013.

    In 2016, it found itself caught in the crosshairs of a diplomatic feud over Korea’s decision to build an anti-missile system, a move China vehemently opposed on national security grounds. Emart, along with many other Korean brands, suffered the brunt of Beijing’s retaliatory nationwide boycott on all things Korean. After suffering steep losses, the retail chain in 2017 sold off its remaining five outlets in China to a Thai company and pulled out of the country altogether.

    After scaling back its Asian operations, Emart is expected to focus more on the U.S. market, where Korean brands have been making rapid grounds. According to its regulatory filings, Emart generated 1.28 trillion won in the first three quarters of this year from overseas, up 122 percent from the same period last year and topping last year’s full annual sales of 778.5 billion won.

    Emarts’ robust overseas performance owes largely to its U.S. subsidiary Good Food Holdings, which the Korean retail conglomerate acquired for $275 million in 2018. The Los Angeles-based company owns five upscale food retailing brands, including Bristol Farms, Lazy Acres Natural Market, Metropolitan Market, New Seasons Market, and New Leaf Community Markets, operating mostly in the West Coast.

    Good Food Holdings raked in sales of 1.2 trillion won in the January-September period, up 136 percent from a year ago, on explosive demand for food products among people sheltering at home during the coronavirus outbreak. The company alone was responsible for nearly 93 percent of Emart’s total global sales in the period.

    Emart plans to invest 83.7 billion won through 2022 to expand its U.S. footprint. It is scheduled to launch PK Market, a shop specializing in Asian goods including Korean food, as early as next year in downtown Los Angeles.

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  • Korean cars find few takers in Southeast Asia, sustained by Vietnam market

    Korean cars find few takers in Southeast Asia, sustained by Vietnam market

    Out of 185,595 South Korean cars sold in Southeast Asia last year, Vietnam accounted for 59 percent. While the Vietnamese auto market only ranks fourth in size in the region, its contribution to the sales of Hyundai and Kia, two major Korean brands, has been remarkable. Since 2018 Vietnam has accounted for more than half of all South Korean car sales in Southeast Asia.

    Sales of Hyundai and Kia in Vietnam in the first 10 months of 2020 rose to 82,129 units for a 31 percent market share.

    Hyundai topped the market with sales at 57,039 vehicles, followed by Japan’s Toyota with 49,950.

    Hyundai vehicles are made by TC Motor at its plant in the northern province of Ninh Binh while Truong Hai Auto (Thaco) makes Kia at its factory in the Chu Lai industrial zone in the Southern Quang Nam Province.

    According to the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association, South Korean cars had a 5.2 percent share of the regional market in 2019. The figure for Japanese cars was 74.3 percent or 2.63 million units last year.

  • Apple to open second South Korean store

    Apple to open second South Korean store

    Apple is preparing to open its second retail store in South Korea. Located in Seoul’s main finance district, Apple Yeouido will make direct sales and support accessible to a whole new community.

    Apple first welcomed customers in South Korea in 2018, when Apple Garosugil opened in Seoul’s Gangnam area. The same experience is coming to Yeouido, an island bordered by the Han River and southwest of the Myeong-dong shopping district.

    Apple Yeouido is located on L1 of IFC Mall Seoul, an indoor shopping center directly below the angular office towers of IFC Seoul and near the iconic 63 Building. Shoppers enter the mall through a glass pavilion just steps from Yeouido Park. Three floors of fashion, cinema, and food are tucked below ground.

    In the future, visitors can expect Apple to host educational and creative Today at Apple sessions that engage the store’s surroundings.

    Like all recent Apple Store openings, Apple Yeouido will follow strict safety guidelines including reduced capacity and a mask requirement. Apple Garosugil was the first Apple Store outside of Greater China to reopen during the pandemic and served as an important signal tower for Apple’s global reopening strategy.

  • Starbucks Korea to join the delivery fray

    Starbucks Korea to join the delivery fray

    Starbucks Korea, the nation’s largest coffee chain, has jumped into the delivery fray, in its attempt to boost annual sales in South Korea to 2 trillion won (US$1.86 billion).

    Expanding aggressively its number of stores here, Starbucks Korea has kept growing its presence with its net profit rising 18.5 percent in 2019 from a year earlier, while sales came in at 1.8 trillion won last year, on the cusp of reaching the 2 trillion won milestone.

    The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has served as a bump in the road, slowing the coffee giant’s bid to grab the coveted 2 trillion won title.

    Industry watchers say Starbucks Korea’s decision to enter the delivery service might be its longer-term preparation for the aftermath of the pandemic, which has wreaked havoc on the food and beverage industry.

    Chairs and tables are moved to a corner at a cafe in Seoul on Nov. 23, 2020, as toughened social distancing rules are to only allow takeout and delivery sales at the place.

    Starbucks Korea plans to open a delivery-only store in Gangnam District, Seoul on Nov. 27 as part of a pilot project, and following analysis into demand, it is likely to open another such store in Gangnam District in the middle of next month.

    The delivery-only store has no space assigned for visiting customers, only coffee making stands and a waiting room for delivery persons known as riders.

    In the meantime, other major coffee brands in Korea such as the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Hollys Coffee, Caffe Pascucci and Ediya Coffee are already operating their own delivery services, so they are likely to keep a keen eye on the possible impact Starbucks Korea’s move might result in.

  • Retail sales in South Korea going slowly up

    Retail sales in South Korea going slowly up

    Retail sales in South Korea increased 8.4 per cent in October from a year earlier on the back of the pandemic and consumption-boosting events. Sales of furniture and other consumer goods moved up 18.6 per cent over the period, according to the data.

  • Korean department stores are being converted into culture spaces

    Korean department stores are being converted into culture spaces

    South Korean department stores are on track to transform their outlets from simple shopping centres into culture spaces.

    The primary factor behind the department stores’ increasing efforts to install cultural spaces is the sluggish performance of their offline stores amid the expansion of contactless consumption through online channels resulting from the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

    Lotte Department Store, for example, started setting up experience-focused cultural facilities within its outlets across the country last year.

    The company’s flagship store in Jamsil, southern Seoul, is running a cultural space called 291 Photographs, which hosts a variety of photo exhibitions and offers profile photograph services for professional writers, in addition to camera and book sales.

    Hyundai Department Store also built a cultural space at its Pangyo branch, south of Seoul.

    Under the concept of an ‘Art Museum’ that focuses on installing a variety of artworks including sculptures and paintings on each floor of the store, Hyundai Department Store is turning its Pangyo store into a kind of art gallery.

    Shinsegae Department Store is running professional galleries at its flagship location in Seoul and as well as stores in Busan, Gwangju and Daegu.

    As the shopping experience itself is becoming not enough to lure consumers, department store operators are looking for ways to differentiate themselves by transforming their stores into cultural attractions where visitors can enjoy not only shopping but also a variety of culture and art.

  • The History of Whoo to open luxury Korean beauty flagship store in Canada

    The History of Whoo to open luxury Korean beauty flagship store in Canada

    LG Household & Health Care proudly announces the opening of a first-of-its-kind, The history of Whoo luxury concept store in Canada. The history of Whoo is a best-selling, record-breaking, prestigious Korean skincare brand known worldwide and recognized for its impeccable quality, use of precious ingredients, and unique formulas once reserved for royalty and members of the Royal Court. Each precious formulation is preserved in distinctly luxurious packaging including flacons and vials inspired by the Korean cultural heritage.

    Customers at the new flagship Canadian store can expect the same level of luxury and attention to detail that The history of Whoo has become synonymous with. Upon entering the space, customers are welcomed as guests and invited to experience a truly immersive shopping experience; from elegant gold-plated fixtures to Gani marble floors, mirrored ceilings, and a dramatic custom-crafted chandelier, all culminating into an elegant showcase designed to envelop the senses in luxury and reflect the royal heritage of the brand.

    The new Canadian store will open its doors at 10:00 a.m. on November 20th at Cadillac Fairview Richmond Centre, British Columbia. The first 75 customers will receive a complimentary limited-edition cosmetic case filled with deluxe samples valued at over $100, with the purchase of $8 or more, while supplies last. To ensure a clean, safe, and comfortable environment, Cadillac Fairview Richmond Centre has put all necessary safety and social distancing measures into place.

    Inside the store, highly trained beauty consultants specialized in Korean skincare will offer shoppers personalized one-on-one consultations with customized recommendations from a selection of luxury brands, including:

    The history of Whoo – Launched in 2003, the most luxurious skincare brand from LG Household & Healthcare, Whoo harmoniously balances modern-day technology with Ancient Eastern medicinal principals to deliver the most prestigious traditions to the Empresses of today. The Chinese character “后” (Whoo) translates into Empress.

    For the first time, a brand has uncovered the beauty secrets of the Royal Court, incorporating their rare and delicate nutritious ingredients from Gongjindan – a traditional herbal recipe. Each ingredient originating from the finest sources around the world, carefully blended and perfectly balanced to achieve harmonious, healthy, and youthful-looking skin.

    Its flagship product – Bichup Self-Generating Anti-Aging Essence is an all-in-one secret recipe that increases skin moisturization and improves the appearance of wrinkles for smoother and more radiant skin. According to a Kantar Worldpanel Beauty Evaluation, this globally renowned product has been the best-selling anti-aging essence in South Korea for nine consecutive years1. Each year, the serum is released with intricately designed limited-edition packaging inspired by the Royal cultural heritage, making it one of the most highly anticipated and most valued qualities about Whoo.

    Su:m37 – a traditional Korean luxury brand that utilizes cutting edge fermentation technology to achieve highly functional skincare products. Known for its best-selling “Secret Essence,” created using Cyto-FermTM technology, a three-stage fermentation process, to create a natural and fermented water achieved by aging and fermenting a variety of 80 plants for an entire year. The antioxidant-rich, renewed Secret Essence improves skin elasticity and barrier function to enhance the skin’s own natural strength and resistance.

    O HUI – a luxury cosmetic brand based on the concept of skin science to harmonize the skin and address its condition through the use of cutting-edge biotechnology and natural botanicals. Its iconic Prime Advancer Ampoule Serum contains the brand’s proprietary Skin Core Enhancing technology to help protect the skin’s barrier and improve its resilience to environmental stressors such as pollution and seasonal changes.

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  • SK Telecom’s 11Street to let shoppers buy from Amazon

    SK Telecom’s 11Street to let shoppers buy from Amazon

    SK Telecom Co., South Korea’s largest mobile carrier, said Monday it is partnering with Amazon.com, Inc. to allow South Koreans to have easier access to products on the U.S. e-commerce giant’s platform.

    The carrier said users of its e-commerce unit 11Street Co. can directly purchase the U.S. company’s products on its platform. It did not provide a specific time frame for the service’s launch.

    SK Telecom said it has also made an agreement with Amazon so that the U.S. tech giant has the right to acquire a stake in 11Street based on the South Korean e-commerce company’s progress in the local market.

    The announcement comes as SK Telecom is currently planning an initial public offering (IPO) for 11Street.

    The carrier said in its third-quarter conference call that the e-commerce unit is among its list of subsidiaries, such as new mobility spinoff T map Mobility Co., that will pursue IPOs.

    The e-commerce unit’s sales reached 135.7 billion won (US$122.7 million) in the third quarter, up 8 percent from a year earlier, according to SK Telecom.

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  • AmorePacific opens first ‘refill store’

    AmorePacific opens first ‘refill store’

    South Korean cosmetics giant AmorePacific Corp has opened a so-called ‘refill station’ – a first for the nation’s cosmetics industry.

    The company opened the facility as a trial inside its new Gwanggyo store that opened last week in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province.

    Customers can take an empty container made of coconut shells from the store and fill it with the product of their choice, with 15 different kinds of shampoos and body washes on offer.

    After filling the container with the product of their choice and measuring the weight, they pay per gram.

    Although the price is different by product, customers can generally fill a container at savings of roughly 50 percent compared to pre-packaged cosmetics products.

    The contents for refill will be limited to those with a manufacturing date of less than 100 days prior. Returned empty containers will be sterilised before being released to be refilled.

    “We decided to run the refill station to better meet the demand of the times requiring a wider variety of sales methods and the promotion of refill products,” the company said.

  • Rapyd launches payment capabilities in South Korea – extends its Asia Pacific footprint

    Rapyd launches payment capabilities in South Korea – extends its Asia Pacific footprint

    Rapyd, a global Fintech as a Service company, has launched its ‘all-in-one’ payment capabilities in South Korea. By partnering with leading Korean payment service providers, KCP, PayLetter and others, Rapyd now provides access to a robust and comprehensive suite of South Korean payment options across international and local cards (Hyundai Card, Shinhan Card, Samsung Card), mobile wallets (Kakao Pay, Samsung Pay, Toss, and PAYCO), bank transfers, vouchers, and carrier billing.

    According to eMarketer, South Korea is one of the world’s top five eCommerce markets by retail eCommerce Sales volume, accounting for $113 billion sales in 2019. And COVID-19 has further contributed to the rise of digital payments in the country. According to GlobalData, South Korea’s share of cash in transaction volumes is expected to decline to 37.2% by 2023, while non-cash payments will account for two-thirds of payment volumes. The pandemic has also given rise to social distancing, causing a decline in in-store purchases. These are being offset by rising e-commerce spending.

    South Koreans are also quickly moving towards new and emerging payment technologies. According to the Rapyd Asia Pacific eCommerce and Payments Guide 2020, 36% of South Koreans chose mobile wallet payments (also known in South Korea as Simple payments) as their most preferred payment method. Kakao Pay was used by 41% of respondents, followed by Samsung Pay (32%), PAYCO (21%), and Toss (21%). Local cards such as Shinhan, KB, Hyundai, and Samsung Cards are the second most preferred payment methods in the country, chosen by 30% respondents.

    Rapyd now offers the majority of the most popular Korean payments methods identified in the research. The rollout of South Korea payments capabilities will enable international companies to immediately provide localised payment experiences catered to the expectations of modern Korean consumers,  and tap into one of the largest and most advanced eCommerce populations.

    “South Korea is setting many trends in Asia Pacific, and digital payments are not an exception. This market is seeing fast adoption of mobile wallets, such as Kakao Pay, and is incredibly rich in payment services. While competition is heating up and the market is becoming more segmented, the overall pie of Korean mobile payments keeps growing. With the launch of Rapyd’s payment capabilities in South Korea, we are able to bridge the global eCommerce players to a vibrant and exciting Korean market opportunity, and create a truly native South Korean Payment experience,” said Joel Yarbrough, Vice President for Asia Pacific, Rapyd.

    Jaewook Noh, Managing Director, KCP, commented “South Korea is one of the world’s most mature payment markets in the world, and we welcome an opportunity to collaborate with Rapyd and bring Korea closer to the global eCommerce ecosystem. Our partnership is an example of ‘local going global’: it is an attestation of our commitment to building customer-centered experiences, while also supporting the growth of the global Internet economy.”

    Additionally, businesses based in South Korea will also be able to access Rapyd’s Global Payments Network and expand internationally into 100+ markets around the world by accepting payments from consumers in any of the 900 locally preferred payment methods supported by Rapyd.

    One of the first South Korean companies to access Rapyd Global Payment Network capabilities is SENTBE, a Fintech money transfer service, looking to provide easier, faster, and more convenient global remittances.

    “We are pleased to be collaborating with Rapyd, a vital partner in helping SENTBE expand globally as a total FX solution company. As we have recently acquired a Payment Gateway Licence in Korea, we are also looking forward to being a solid infrastructure partner for Rapyd in the near future,” said Alex Choi, CEO, SENTBE.

    South Korea is the sixth global market where Rapyd extends its ‘all-in-one’ payment capabilities. The expansion of the Rapyd Global Payments Network offering all-in-one payment capabilities first took place in Singapore in November 2019, followed by Brazil in March 2020, the United Kingdom in June 2020 and Mexico and India in July 2020.

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  • Korean firm invests in Vietnam car-wash chain

    Korean firm invests in Vietnam car-wash chain

    South Korean oil refiner GS Caltex Corp has bought an 11.56 percent stake in car-wash startup Vietwash for $1.7 million. Nguyen Thanh Duong, founder of Vietwash, said the money would be used to double the number of outlets to over 100 in the next few years.

    It now offers car and motorbike wash services at 51 locations in Ho Chi Minh City and central Da Nang City.

    Hur Joon-hong, GS Caltex executive vice president, said his company would help Vietwash develop an automatic car maintenance system and expand.

    Vietwash, which began operations in 2014, claims to be the first car-wash chain in Vietnam and serves 1.3 million customers a year.

    In 2016 it received an investment of $1 million from private-equity firm Vietnam Investments Group. GS Caltex has been selling vehicle lubricants in Vietnam since 2017.

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