Transaction volume increased by 43.5%! Online transactions become the main mode of furniture retail in South Korea

As Koreans become more and more interested in decorating their houses, consumption of home furniture such as sofas and storage cabinets has increased. As office workers work from home and students take online classes on a daily basis, sales of chairs, tables, etc. have also increased.

Last year, South Korea's furniture retail sales exceeded 10 trillion won for the first time , and the interior decoration market is growing rapidly. In particular, about half of the transactions are completed online.

According to data from the National Statistics Office on the 2nd, South Korea 's furniture retail sales last year were tentatively set at 10.1751 trillion won, the first time sales exceeded 10 trillion won , an increase of 24% from 2019 .

Take Hanssem , a famous Korean furniture company , for example. Its total sales last year reached 2.67 trillion won, up 21.7% from the year before . Its operating profit increased by 66.7% to 93 billion won, and its net profit increased by 58.1% to 66.5 billion won.

The lifestyles of Korean consumers have changed significantly due to the pandemic, with more and more people purchasing furniture through online shopping malls as non-face-to-face purchases have increased due to the coronavirus .

Online transactions amounted to 4.98 trillion won , accounting for about half (49%) of the total transaction volume . From 2018 to 2019, the online transaction volume of furniture was only 3 trillion won from 2018 to 2019, but last year's transaction volume increased by 43.5% to 4 trillion won .

For example, in the last five months (October last year to February this year), Casamia's online furniture brand Onion's sales increased by about 110% compared with the previous five months, showing good sales momentum. Therefore, it was decided to formally expand the scale of Onion starting this year . The goal is to significantly increase the number of product categories and varieties to expand it to about 40% of the current level.

As far as furniture goes, it’s large and heavy , and depending on the product, installers sometimes need to visit , so delivery usually takes about a week.

But online purchases are different. With the most competitive "fast delivery", it can better meet customers' demand and trend for fast delivery services . Therefore, sellers should pay attention that in 2021, when Korean e-commerce is developing rapidly , online purchases may surpass offline purchases to become the main way of furniture retail in Korea!

South Korea

furniture

Online Sales