Convenience stores in South Korea are shops full of surprises that also play the role of a cultural center. While the stores offer daily necessities such as socks, and tee-shirts, they also sell Hallyu-related products like K-pop albums and South Korean snacks, drinks, and ready-to-eat food menus such as Gimbab (rice, vegetables, and other ingredients wrapped in seaweed), and Tteokbokki (finger-sized rice cakes simmered in spicy and sweet red chili sauce).
While Emart24 operates some 50 stores in Malaysia and Singapore, major South Korean convenience store chain operator BGF Retail has some 370 CU stores in Mongolia and 140 in Malaysia. The stores are frequently visited by young people who have traveled to or worked in South Korea. The convenience stores are also beloved by Hallyu fans.
Emart24 said that the company forged a partnership with Saihan Partners in December 2023 to cooperate in the franchise business in the Southeast Asian country. The launching event took place at a hotel in Phnom Penh on February 1. Saihan Partners is a joint venture set up between Cambodia's Saison's Brother Holding Co. and South Korea's Hanlim Architecture Group.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
