Lotte Mart to create special shopping zones for foreign travelers

Lotte Mart, one of South Korea's major supermarket chains, will create special shopping zones for foreign visitors at its branches frequently visited by inbound travelers, its operator said Wednesday.

Last month, Lotte Mart first created a 20-meter-long special shopping zone, named "Must-Haves of Korea: K-Food," at its Seoul Station branch, where about 30 percent of visitors were foreigners in the first eight months of this year, according to Lotte Shopping Co.

Lotte Mart plans to expand the shopping zone to its eight other branches near tourist spots, including those at Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul and Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul, as well as on the southern resort island of Jeju, by the end of this year.

"We have prepared customized services for foreign customers, starting with the Seoul Station branch as the number of foreign travelers has increased since the endemic and the number of foreigners visiting Lotte Mart is expected to further grow with the resumption of China's group tours," a company official said.

Lotte Mart's Seoul Station branch is also providing a luggage storage service to foreign customers and has installed currency exchange machines.

It additionally resumed its international shipping service in May, which runs three days a week, on Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays. (Yonhap)