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Tag: lotte world tower

  • Lotte World Tower becomes tourist hotspot in Korea

    Lotte World Tower becomes tourist hotspot in Korea

    Lotte World Tower has drawn 126,000 daily visitors on average in April, becoming Korea’s newest tourist hotspot.

    The number is set to grow faster this month, as Lotte holds various events around the nation’s tallest skyscraper in Jamsil, southeastern Seoul, during the “golden week” holiday. According to Lotte Corporation, Monday, 3.16 million people have visited Lotte World Tower and its neighboring Lotte World Mall since the tower’s April 3 opening. About 102,000 people per day visited the site on weekdays, while 203,000 per day visited there on weekends.

    In particular, Seoul Sky, the nation’s highest observation deck located between the 117th and 123rd floors of the tower, was visited by 120,000 people ─ about 4,800 a day enjoyed the city view from the 500-meter-high deck.

    Lotte, which has suffered a decreasing number of Chinese tourists over a missile dispute, now expects to achieve its goal of attracting 60 million tourists a year. The growing number of visitors positively affected sales revenue of facilities there as well. The aquarium, cinema, shopping mall, department store, discount store and electronics shop in the mall respectively had 33.6, 48.5, 15.8, 10.6, 19 and 61.5 percent more sales in April than a month earlier.

    The duty free shop alone suffered a 40 percent sales decrease, due to the Chinese government’s de facto travel ban on group tours to Korea.

    As more tourists are expected to visit the tower this week, Lotte has begun to hold various events. Until next Monday, visitors can enjoy the Sweet Swan public art project at Seokchon Lake. Lotte expects the massive swan family sculptures will boost sales of the nearby shops, as the 2014 Rubber Duck project and 2016 Super Moon project did.

    Families with children may enjoy a LEGO festival at a park in front of the tower. Four million LEGO parts will be available to visitors during the festival, so they can participate in making an eight- meter-wide and 12-meter-high flower which will be displayed at the park. Lotte World Tower is also holding exhibitions and classical concerts during the holidays.

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  • South Korea’s tallest skyscraper to open early next month

    South Korea’s tallest skyscraper to open early next month

    The skyscraper built by South Korean retail giant Lotte Group is due to open early next month, the group’s operating unit said Tuesday.

    The 123-story Lotte World Tower will officially open to the public from April 3, housing offices, luxury residence and a hotel, and an observation deck at the very top, Lotte World said in a press release.

    The construction of the landmark was a mega real estate project long envisioned by Lotte founder Shin Kyuk-ho, who always aspired to have “something world-class” to further grow his sprawling retail and tourism businesses.

    It almost took three decades for Lotte to finally realize Shin’s dream, as his grand plan had faced strong opposition from past administrations and the public over safety concerns.

    Six years after the ground breaking, the 555-meter high skyscraper is now the world’s fifth-tallest building after the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the Shanghai Tower, the Makkah Royal Clock Tower Hotel in Saudi Arabia and One World Trade Center in New York, the company said.

    The lower floors of the Lotte World Tower will consist mainly of offices, with some 30 stories above them accommodating a lavish residence named Signiel Residence, one of which has been bought by the current Lotte Chairman Shin Dong-bin.

    Signiel Seoul, a luxury hotel will be located in the upper part of the landmark building, where the guests can stay in some 235 rooms. The Signiel Seoul will be the world’s second-tallest hotel, with one of its top suite rooms costing about 20 million won (US$17,860) per night.

    Between the 117th to 123rd floors is a glass-made observation deck designed to accommodate 900 people at once, who will be able to see the entire view of Seoul and, if they’re lucky, as far as the East Sea, according to Lotte.

     

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  • Lotte World Tower duty free store has reopened

    Lotte World Tower duty free store has reopened

    As expected, Lotte Duty Free opened its World Tower flagship duty free outlet yesterday, following a six-month period of uncertainty caused by last June’s closure of the duty free section in the building.

    The opening follows the well-publicised and controversial shock loss of Lotte’s duty free operating license for this store back in November 2015.

    As reported, the Korea Customs Service (KCS) awarded the 10-year duty free license to Lotte Duty Free on 17 December 2016. However, it has clearly stated since that if the operator is subsequently found guilty of any wrongdoing in its ongoing investigations related to a contributions scandal, then it will revoke the award.

    INVESTIGATIONS CONTINUE OVER ALLEGED CASH FOR FAVOURS

    As reported, this ongoing investigation surrounds requests for multi-million dollar equivalent monetary contributions for foundations, which were made to Lotte and other companies by President Park Geun-hye’s former close friend Choi Soon-sil, who is presently under arrest.

    Park’s relationship with Choi – a friend for 40 years – was also one of the key factors which led up to her impeachment last month, although Choi denies all the charges related to abuse of power and fraud.Park also maintains that she has not been involved with Choi in any wrongdoing, although she has publicly expressed regret at allowing Choi to get too close to matters of government.

    Meanwhile, Lotte has given several bold undertakings to attract foreign tourists and create new jobs alongside the award of this new contract, which the Korean Customs Service – itself under pressure – will doubtless expect it to meet.

    MASSIVE INVESTMENT PROMISES

    As reported earlier this month, Lotte has pledged to invest Won2.3 trillion ($1.97bn) on tourist-related investments in the upmarket Gangnam quarter of Seoul between 2017 to 2021.

    Lotte Duty Free spokesman Jihyun Ethan Choi also formally confirmed to TRBusiness (2 January) that the duty free reopening has naturally come as a huge relief to Lotte’s staff.

    They have had to endure a six-month wait to find out whether they would have jobs or not at the World Tower – subject to winning the license or not. (Lotte employs around 1300 individuals at the World Tower).

    CHINESE TOURIST ARRIVALS CONCERNS

    At this time, Lotte and all other duty free operators in South Korea will also be keenly monitoring the levels of Chinese tourist arrivals over the next few months, since their biggest overseas duty free customers (in sheer spending power terms) registered only +1.8% growth – or 516,956 visitors – in November 2016. This was a big drop from previous double-digit numbers, according to the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO).

    Many commentators are not surprisingly pointing to pressure on Chinese tourists to cool their enthusiasm for South Korea in the wake of its government decision to site a US-built missile defence system on the border with North Korea. China says this system has the ability to gather data on surrounding terrain in the region.

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  • Lotte forecasts $5bn for 2016 after first-half surge

    Lotte forecasts $5bn for 2016 after first-half surge

    South Korean duty free and travel retailer, Lotte Duty Free Group, is targeting a +20% increase in total duty free revenue to reach just over $5bn in 2016 after first half growth of +25%. Driving the big increase have been high-spending Chinese visitors shopping in its stores.

    First half sales reached almost $3bn, a senior Lotte Duty Free source said on condition of anonymity. The sales boost comes at a time when the company was preparing to close its Lotte World Tower store in June after failing to renew the shop’s licence.

    “Chinese tourist numbers are very strong (and) we are forecasting a +20% increase in total revenue for 2016. Sales have increased a lot (so far) this year because in 2015 we had the MERS epidemic problem,” the source said. “Last year, our total revenue in South Korea was $4.2bn.”

    Lotte-World-Tower-hero-P&C

    Chinese travellers continue to boost sales.

    Sales in the second half of 2016 also got off to a good start with July revenue climbing +45% as the summer peak season got underway, the source noted.

    To cope with the closure of the Lotte World Tower store the company has expanded its Sogong downtown flagship unit in central Seoul. The shop has been expanded to occupy four floors in the Lotte Sogong department store building – adding floor 12 to floors nine to 11.

    The duty free shop took over the 12th floor in February which has been converted to the new perfume and cosmetics space and opening in June. It replaces the food court that was previously there.

    BEAUTY GETS ITS OWN FLOOR

    Moving beauty to the 12th floor from the 9th floor has increased the total duty free beauty area by around +35% to 3,500 sq m. In addition, Lotte will use about one third of its 11th floor retail area to display mid-priced South Korean cosmetics brands which are also popular with Chinese visitors.

    Space for the South Korean cosmetics brands zone on the 11th floor is being created by moving some fashion brands from this level to the ninth floor area where perfume and cosmetics were located previously. The ninth floor area is being developed as an open display fashion floor and Lotte plans to bring in a number of new South Korean and international fashion brands as well for the first time.

    The group has taken over the Seoul Gimpo Airport beauty and general merchandise licence, previously operated by Shilla Duty Free, which was recently retendered by Korea Airports Corporation (KAC).Meanwhile, responding quickly to the loss of its Lotte World Tower store licence, Lotte has recently acquired two new airport duty free licenses, emphasising the company’s intention to retain its leading position in  Korea’s DF&TR market.

    SME operator City Plus was awarded the Gimpo liquor, tobacco and general merchandise licence, that was previously operated by Lotte, after KAC reserved the concession for SME bidders only.

    Elsewhere, Lotte Duty Free has also taken over the Gimhae Airport perfume and cosmetics licence in Busan, after Shinsegae Duty Free decided to give up after losing money and it was retendered.

    FIGHTING ON FOR LOTTE WORLD

    Meanwhile, Lotte is aiming to reopen its Lotte World Tower store and has set its sights on winning one of four new duty free licenses for downtown shops in Seoul that Korea Customs Service is due to tender towards the end of 2016.

    “The 7th floor is being used for the Lotte Internet duty free centre and the customer lounge. As the government recently issued new duty free licenses, we will do our best to acquire a licence to repay the love our customers have shown to us. Thank you.”Following the World Tower closure: Lotte posted the following announcement on its website: “We express our deep thanks to our customers for shopping at Lotte World Tower. Due to the expiry of our duty free shop licence, Lotte World Tower store was closed on 26 June, 2016.

    Of the four new downtown duty free shop licenses that KCS will award, three are for large conglomerates and one for SME operators. In addition to Lotte, Shilla Duty Free and Shinsegae Duty Free may make bids even though both companies have already opened new downtown stores in Seoul this year.

    Newcomer Hyundae Department Store is another likely bidder, as is WalkerHill Duty Free which had to close its newly-rebuilt downtown store after losing its licence. It is keen to re-open its now empty shop.

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