The country's three big-box operators — E-mart, Lotte Mart and Homeplus — accounted for 7.9 percent of total retail revenue as of April this year, the lowest share on record, according to data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
The figure is less than half the 17.9 percent recorded in 2020, the year the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
Hypermarkets dominated Korean retail at their peak in 2009 and 2010, when their share topped 50 percent and the combined sales of the three chains outstripped those of all department stores, convenience stores and supermarkets nationwide.
The format held its lead even after a mandatory store-closure rule took effect in 2012, but the pandemic upended the landscape.
In fresh food, once a core strength, fast-delivery e-commerce platforms and lightly regulated wholesale grocers steadily ate into market share, while household goods ceded ground to fixed-price chain Daiso and Chinese players such as AliExpress and Temu.
The sector's share has fallen each year since — 15.1 percent in 2021, 13.0 percent in 2022, 12.1 percent in 2023 and 11.0 percent in 2024 — before dropping below 10 percent for the first time last year, to 9.8 percent. Even measured against offline rivals alone, hypermarkets have slipped to third place behind department and convenience stores.
The downturn looks set to persist.
Homeplus, which once vied with E-mart for the top spot, entered court-led rehabilitation last year and has since shuttered dozens of outlets and shed about 5,000 jobs; with a July 3 deadline to win approval for its restructuring plan, analysts warn the chain could face liquidation if a sale falls through.
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