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Retailers, banks embrace demographic change with new products
By Jhoo Dong-chan
A 36-year-old hamburger store owner surnamed An refurbished his store recently to better serve customers who visit there alone. He removed some tables and installed a huge bar.
"An increasing number of customers visit my store alone. They sat alone at tables designed for two or more people. It was just a waste of space. We could've accommodated more than twice as many customers if we served them at a bar table," he said.
"We also plan to introduce combo meals for customers coming here alone. Nobody orders a family combo meal anymore."
The number of people living alone in their 20s and 30s here is nearing 2 million. Their consumption patterns visiting movie theaters, restaurants or bars alone are now leading industry trends.
Not only retailers and restaurant franchises but also furniture makers and even banks have rolled out a series of products targeting the country's single households.
According to Statistics Korea, the nation's single households totaled 5.79 million in 2018. Of them, the number of these residents in their 20s and 30s was 1.9 million, more than double its 2000 figure of 733,000.
"In the past, single people in their 20s accounted for most of Korea's single households," Woosuk University professor Lee Jae-hyung said.
"I believe the number will increase further. They are reluctant to get married due to various reasons including economic and social pressure. Some even declare their intent to remain single for the rest of their lives. The trend will be there for a while. Their consumption patterns will lead a wide range of industries."
Retailers and restaurant franchise
Reflecting the growing number of single households, restaurant chains are transforming themselves to attract solo customers.
Ssaum opened its first restaurant serving Bossam, or boiled pork, in Sillim-dong, southern Seoul, in 2014, and has become one of the most noticeable franchises with 95 branches across the country.
Bossam and samgyeopsal have been considered to be a party delicacy served for more than three of four people, but Ssaum gained customer attention for its combo bossam and samgyeopsal meals for one person.
Pizza chain Mr. Pizza also joined hands with food delivery app Yogiyo to introduce pizza combos for single households with a reasonable price range in April.
Supermarket chain E-mart rolled out quarter-piece watermelons last summer for single customers that were reluctant to buy a whole watermelon. The supermarket chain said sales of watermelons surged 67 percent from the previous year.
It also introduced other kinds of miniature fruit products for single households this year.
Theaters and even banks
Multiplex chain CGV is also quickly adapting to the nation's demographic change. It installed the My Box reserved seats, exclusively for solo customers, at its Deungchon and Daehangno branches in Seoul this year.
"Customers who visit our theaters alone to watch a movie accounted for 15.8 percent last year, a huge jump from the previous year's figure of 5.6 percent," a CGV official said. "The My Box reflects these solo customers' needs."
Korea's demographic changes also bring changes in banks' savings products.
Targeting the country's single households, Woori Bank has recently introduced the All for Me installment savings product. Customers who deposit more than 500,000 won ($424.27) within three months of opening the account are given a voucher for one night at a hotel.
Citing a growing interest in their health and wellbeing, Shinhan Bank also rolled out the Health Plus installment savings account product. Customers who clear their exercise goals through fitness app "S-Health" are given a preferential interest rate.
In KB Financial Group's survey on 2,000 people in their 20s living alone in the metropolitan area, 38 percent replied they will live alone for more than 10 years. The figure is up 3 percent from a year earlier.
"The growth of the nation's single households is more rapid than the government anticipated due to various social reasons," KB Management Financial Research Institute said in the survey.
A 36-year-old surnamed Song said the social perceptions of the nation's single households should be changed.
"The government's approach toward single households is really outdated. They believe those who live alone without marriage and do not give birth are a social problem," he said.
"They provide incentives for married couples who give birth to multiple children while planning to impose additional tax on single households. Apart from social pressures behind the growth of single households, it's a matter of individual choice whether they want to live alone or not. The government shouldn't direct their freedom of choice."
