| Three mobile homes sold at CU stores / Courtesy of BGF Retail |
By Kim Jae-heun
Convenience stores are introducing rather unconventional products and services to attract consumers ahead of Chuseok, the traditional mid-autumn holiday, on Sept. 10, according to industry officials Wednesday.
Major convenience stores like CU, Seven Eleven and GS have all started selling extravagant gift sets for the upcoming national holiday.
GS25, a convenience store operated by GS Retail, offers the top-quality wine, DRC Romanee Conti 2017, for 79 million won ($60,282) at its stores along with Dom Perignon champagne and Chateau Margaux wine.
"In the last two years, our sales of premium wine during Chuseok skyrocketed by a factor of 10. They are more sought after by customers living outside of the capital area as such products are hard to find there," a GS Retail official said.
It also collaborated with Hanwha Resort to introduce long-term travel packages on Jeju Island. The company targets consumers who wish to try out living in Jeju for a month.
| A Gold medal gift set for Chuseok offered by Emart 24 / Courtesy of Emart |
BGF Retail is selling mobile homes in partnership with Yeon Housing at is convenience store, CU. The prices of the tiny houses vary from 15.6 million won at the cheapest to 22.6 million won at the most expensive.
During last year's Chuseok, BGF Retail sold three mobile homes that cost in the 16-million-won range.
"We first started this unique marketing campaign to draw consumers' attention, but they sold much better than we expected. Now, we are offering more luxury goods with the conclusion that they will all sell well," a BGF Retail official said.
Seven Eleven is targeting those who are looking for products to enjoy at home. It offers a Japanese video game console, the Nintendo Switch OLED, and a treadmill, the IRUNNER Z3, which cost 430,000 won and 1.49 million won, respectively.