Models, dressed in traditional Korean attire to celebrate the Lunar New Year holiday later this month, showcase Homeplus' various gift sets at the discount store chain's Gangseo store in southwestern Seoul, Jan. 10. Courtesy of Homeplus

Major discount store chain Homeplus is attracting consumers with special gift sets at discounted prices in celebration of the Lunar New Year holiday later this month.

With the holiday less than two weeks away, the company on Thursday launched a major discount event — up to 50 percent — with gift sets containing a wide range of products until the end of the month.

The event offers a variety of gift sets, from liquor to fish, fruit, beef, dried seaweed, tea, nutritional supplements and processed food.

Homeplus said the discount event was created as the country has seen a surge in retail prices of an extensive range of food products, as well as restaurants and other food industries throughout the previous year.

The company said it also prepared the gift sets by selecting the most popular items from a year before. “Most Popular Gifts for Most Reasonable Prices” is the slogan for the ongoing event, it added.

“Scaled-up market prices in the country have pumped up retail prices for various gift sets out there,” Kim Sang-jin, chief of trade marketing at Homeplus, said. “To offer the most in-demand gifts for reasonable prices, we have been careful and spared no efforts in analyzing trends, negotiating with producers, selecting items and arranging them for the most ideal package.”

In December, Homeplus began selling the gift sets through a pre-event online reservation. As of Jan. 10, the event's overall sales jumped by 20 percent from the previous year.

The highest sales hike from the previous year was for fruits, which grew by 112 percent. Sales of beef jerky jumped by 93 percent, while desserts and teas surged by 48 percent, liquor by 46 percent, nutritional supplements by 42 percent and seafood by 24 percent.