Coupang said Thursday it is ending its social commerce offerings to wholly transition into an e-commerce company.The company will be immediately discontinuing its social commerce deals, which included limited-time discount coupons for local restaurants and services such as beauty salons. Coupang began in 2010 as a social commerce company, meaning its main focus was on local service deals and group-buying coupons. In 2012, it began moving into the e-commerce space.“We decided that our open market

Cosmetics maker Amorepacific released its fourth-quarter and yearly profits on Thursday, showing a drop in operating profits in the fourth quarter but a successful year overall.Amorepacific saw 1.56 trillion won ($1.36 billion) in sales in the last quarter, up 7.3 percent on-year. However, its operating profits fell 16.5 percent on-year to 134 billion won. Overall in 2016, the company saw a 18.3 percent rise in sales to nearly 6.7 trillion won, bringing its operating profits up 18.5 percent to 1

Incheon International Airport Corp. said Wednesday it has officially begun accepting bids for duty-free operators hoping to open stores in its second terminal, which is set to open later this year.The call for bids comes about three months later than initially planned, in the midst of tensions between the airport and the Korea Customs Service about the way in which licenses are granted.“We could not hold off any longer on the bids. If we do not choose the operators by April, we may face a crisis

Doubts are growing over the future of Dongwha Duty Free, as industry speculation grows that it is unlikely to meet an extended debt repayment deadline amid heated competition among duty-free stores in central Seoul.The country’s first downtown duty-free store, which opened its doors in 1973, is currently in crisis, as it has failed to meet a December deadline to pay back Hotel Shilla in a put option. (Yonhap)In May 2013, Hotel Shilla acquired a 19.9 percent stake in Dongwha Duty Free with a put

Tourists from China who came to Korea during the Lunar New Year holiday through travel service provider Ctrip take part in a hanbok experience event at Galleria Duty Free 63 in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, Monday. (Hanwha Galleria)

Retailers are seeking to attract more customers by rolling out delivery-related services and tackling niche delivery issues.On Tuesday, Paju Premium Outlets, run by Shinsegae in partnership with Simon Property Group, announced it had signed an agreement with DHL Korea to provide overseas shipping for tourists shopping in Korea. Overseas shipping services offered at Paju Premium Outlets (Shinsegae Simon)Tourists who purchase products at Paju Premium Outlets can request their items be shipped to t

Lotte World Mall is offering shoppers who live within 10 kilometers of the mall a ride home in a Mercedes-Benz E350 if they spend more than 30,000 won ($25) using Lotte’s L.Pay system. The event will give rides to up to 100 customers daily from Monday to Thursday. (Lotte Asset Development)

The Chinese government is strengthening regulations on the management of imported cosmetics, creating uncertainty for Korean cosmetics firms that have been sustaining growth through popularity among Chinese shoppers.These measures are the latest in a string of moves by the Chinese government seemingly aimed at the booming Korean cosmetics industry. Industry watchers speculate the protective measures are designed to put pressure on Korea, which has agreed to deploy a US Terminal High Altitude Are

The number of air passengers flying through Korea rose to a record high in 2016 with high growth in both domestic and international air travel, according to the Transport Ministry on Monday.Last year, there were a total of 103.9 million journeys by air in Korea.  Travelers crowd Incheon International Airport on Monday, the last day of the Lunar New Year Holiday. (Yonhap)Domestic travel rose 10.5 percent on-year to 30.9 million trips, while international travel rose 18.8 percent to 73 million.The

Retail firm E-Land Group said Wednesday that it has closed a deal to sell its youth clothing brand Teenie Weenie to China’s V-Grass Fashion for 5.13 billion yuan ($751.2 million).“The two companies successfully closed the deal believing that after E-Land successfully introduced Teenie Weenie to the enormous Chinese market, V-Grass will be able to grow it into a global brand,” said an executive with E-Land. V-Grass is a women’s fashion company in China. A Teenie Weenie store in China (E-Land Grou

Personal care product manufacturer LG Household & Health Care said Tuesday that it saw a record-breaking fourth quarter in 2016 with 1.5 trillion won ($1.28 billion) in sales and 178 billion won in operating profits.The nearly 10 percent rise in sales and 20 percent rise in operating profits continues a trend of consecutive growth for the company since 2005. (LG Household & Health Care)Approximately half of the company’s sales, or 798 billion won, came from the cosmetics category. LG H&H continu

The Korean arm of the global advertising agency Serviceplan Group said Tuesday that it has named Julie Kang as its new CEO. Kang has been with the company since 2009 and managed relationships with companies such as Ikea, Absolut, BMW and local brands. Before joining Serviceplan, Kang worked for Interone, the digital arm of BBDO Advertising and Grape Communications, creating advertising campaigns for LG Electronics and Electrolux. Julie Kang (Serviceplan Group)Kang is the first woman and first Ko

The Korean government must create a more focused control tower for identifying and handling consumer products that can pose health and safety risks and implement stronger penalties for corporations that sell such products to prevent future crises, a panel of experts said Tuesday.Academics, representatives from consumer groups and government representatives gathered for the 44th Future Consumers‘ Forum at the National Assembly Members’ Hall to discuss ways to reform the consumer safety management

BEAUTY GETS SMART -- Cosmetics maker Amorepacific signed an agreement with SK Telecom Monday at the SK Telecom headquarters in Seoul. Under the agreement, the two companies will collaborate in creating Internet of Things-based smart beauty services and share big data. Pictured are Amorepacific Head of R&D Han Sang-hoon (left) and SK Telecom Head of IoT Cha In-hyuk. (Amorepacific)

Korea Airports Corp. announced its midterm goals for 2025 on Monday, focusing on improving infrastructure, strengthening security and training more pilots.The corporation will invest about 1 trillion won ($856.5 million) on expanding infrastructure at major airports such as Gimpo International Airport to accommodate increasing passenger numbers by 2018. It is also working to renovate old airport facilities nationwide by 2019. File photo of Sung Il-hwan, the CEO of Korea Airports Corp. (Yonhap)Ai