Luxury at your fingertips in hours: Korea's delivery apps move upmarket
Food delivery platforms such as Baedal Minjok, or Baemin, and Coupang Eats are increasingly selling high-end electronics and products from premium brands typically found in department stores.
Delivery motorcycles with the Baedal Minjok, or Baemin, logo are parked at a Baemin Riders center in Seoul on Dec. 29, 2020.YONHAP
In Korea, a few taps on a delivery app can now bring jewelry worth more than 10 million won ($7,200), the latest smartphone or a high-end camera to your doorstep within an hour or two. The shift comes as Korea’s “quick commerce” market rapidly expands beyond food and other daily necessities into luxury goods.
Quick commerce refers to deliveries made within a radius of about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles).
Major food delivery platforms such as Baedal Minjok, also known as Baemin, and Coupang Eats now sell premium brands typically found in department stores and stand-alone retail shops, driving a sharp rise in transactions for high-priced products.
On Baemin, Swarovski offers jewelry ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of won and crystal-decorated figurines priced at up to 14 million won. The company’s sales on the platform more than doubled in the second quarter from the previous year.
Samsung, which also operates a store on the app, reported that the transaction value of its smartphone sales rose 20 percent on year from January through June; Sony, which sells mirrorless cameras and lenses costing millions of won on Baemin, saw its transaction value increase 40 percent over the same period. Cuckoo Electronics, one of Korea’s largest electric rice cooker makers, joined the platform in May.
Coupang Eats also offers smartphone deliveries, and the overnight grocery service Market Kurly delivers department store beauty brands, such as Amorepacific’s Sulwhasoo and global cosmetics brand MAC, within an hour through its Kurly Now service.
Baedal Minjok, also known as Baemin, and Coupang Eats stickers at a restaurant in SeoulNEWS1
The shift comes as buying products on demand becomes increasingly common, particularly among younger consumers and one- or two-person households.
“Speed is becoming an increasingly important factor in consumers’ purchasing decisions,” an industry source said. “Demand is growing among [those] who need products immediately, such as when rushing to buy an expensive gift ahead of a special occasion, or who need a camera or smartphone delivered quickly after their device breaks down at work.”
High-end brands have traditionally been reluctant to join delivery apps, citing the risk of theft or loss, concerns about their image and logistics costs. But with brick-and-mortar stores’ growth stagnating, brands can use those locations as urban delivery hubs. Improvements in delivery platforms’ secure systems have also helped them become an important channel for diversifying sales.
CHUN YU-JIN
Baemin, for instance, places special identification labels on high-priced products and pays delivery riders a safety surcharge to encourage them to handle such packages with greater care. Customers also receive real-time information on the rider’s location and a photo confirming a delivery’s completion to help prevent disputes over lost items.
Korea’s quick commerce market is projected to grow from about 4.4 trillion won last year to around 6 trillion won by 2030, according to market research firm Statista.
But as competition intensifies, companies face rising logistics costs and questions over delivery workers’ responsibility for handling expensive goods.
“Rather than becoming consumed by competition over speed, companies should focus on managing the quality of the delivery process and building a sustainable logistics system,” said Lee Hong-ju, a professor of consumer economics at Sookmyung Women’s University.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
