The Hyundai Seoul launches airport, hotel luggage delivery for foreign shoppers

Foreign shoppers at The Hyundai Seoul can now send their purchases and suitcases straight to the airport or their hotel, leaving their hands free for the rest of the day.

Hyundai Department Store said Thursday it has partnered with travel logistics startup Goodluck Company to launch a luggage delivery service for foreign customers at the mall in Yeouido, western Seoul.

Customers can apply at the tourist desk on the first floor. Scanning a QR code at the desk opens the Goodluck Company app, which takes bookings for suitcase and shopping bag deliveries in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese.

Items can be sent to Goodluck Company's storage centers at Incheon and Gimpo international airports, or to the first-floor lobby of any hotel in Korea that accepts deliveries. Items going to Seoul that are dropped off before 3 p.m. arrive by 7 p.m. the same day, and those dropped off between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. arrive by 10 p.m. Deliveries outside Seoul must be booked before noon to arrive by 10 p.m.

Suitcase delivery starts at 24,500 won ($18), depending on size, with extra charges by distance outside Seoul. Shopping bags cost 16,900 won each regardless of size and can only be sent within Seoul. Customers can track their items in real time through the app.

The number of foreign visitors to The Hyundai Seoul rose more than 67 percent from January to September compared to the same period last year, according to the company. Sales to foreign customers rose 135 percent over the same period. Foreign customers account for 25 percent of the store's total sales.

The store plans to open a lounge for foreign VIP customers, called the Personal Shopping Room, in January.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]