image_3b

Background

South Korea has to be classed as one of the world’s great economic success stories. Along with Taiwan, South Korea is the only country which has recorded five consecutive decades of economic growth in excess of 5%. The market share of imported luxury brands & license brands is getting more opportunities, department stores are orienting themselves to more foreign brands to local brands.
  • Growing importance of foreigners brands
  • Major player for international fashion
  • Highly profitable market

Distribution in Korea

The retail business in Korea is structured around many points of sale : many of them already have a mature growth, like supermarkets, hypermarkets and department stores, and many others have fast increasing revenues, like teleshopping, or the internet and mobile.

The Korean consumer is sensitive to the brand value and to the products quality as well. Thanks to a strong purchasing power, the Korean consumer is willing to follow the trend, which is really important for him. He also really likes to be guided to purchase, and to know the story of the brand he is about to buy.

Facts and Figures

Considering the GDP per person in year 2013, South Korea ranks 14th, above France and Italia, which rank 8th and 9th respectively.

In terms of purchasing power parity, the Korean GDP ranks 12th, while France ranks 8th and Italia 10th, which gives Korea an important buying power, still growing today.