Shinsegae Group, a traditional powerhouse in South Korea’s retail sector, is poised to clash with the emerging force Coupang in the luxury fashion market.
SSG.com, operated by Shinsegae Group, has announced plans to introduce South Korea’s first official brand store for global luxury e-commerce platform Net-a-Porter. Net-a-Porter, established in the UK in 2000, is part of the Swiss Richemont-affiliated YOOX Net-a-Porter Group.
It serves over 6 million customers in over 170 countries, offering more than 800 women’s luxury fashion and beauty brands.
Recognizing the growing trend of South Korean consumers using foreign luxury websites, SSG.com has formed a strategic alliance with YOOX Net-a-Porter. This partnership will introduce over 200,000 products to the South Korean market, ranging from exclusive global luxury brand collections to new products and limited editions in the country.
SSG.com also plans to sequentially launch other platform brand stores under YOOX Net-a-Porter, including Mr. Porter, which specializes in men’s luxury.
This move is expected to lead to inevitable competition with Coupang in the luxury goods sector. Coupang’s parent company, Coupang Inc., announced last December its acquisition of Farfetch, the world’s largest luxury fashion platform, with a $500 million investment.
Coupang had previously launched ‘Rocket Luxury’, a dedicated luxury beauty brand store, in July of last year, initiating its signature ‘Rocket Delivery’ service for luxury cosmetics. The expansion strategy into luxury categories is part of Coupang’s broader plan to strengthen its luxury lineup.
The online luxury market is becoming a new avenue for growth in the slowing domestic e-commerce market. According to global market research firm Euromonitor, the size of South Korea’s luxury market in 2021 was estimated at US$16.68 billion, up 11.6 per cent from the previous year. It is projected to grow by 23.1 per cent to $20.53 billion by 2027.
Other domestic e-commerce companies are also increasingly focusing on luxury goods. Lotte On has been operating the luxury specialty store On and the Luxury since September 2022, while 11st launched the luxury vertical service ‘OOAh Luxe’ in March of last year.
Gmarket and Auction opened official stores for the luxury fashion platform Catchfashion in October, expanding their offerings of luxury brand direct imports.
This story was originally published by Ashley Song, via Korea Bizwire.
