SOUTH KOREA. Newly established Duty Free Price Research (DFPR) will tomorrow (9 January) launch an online duty free price comparison service, the first of its kind in the Republic.
The platform is called simply Duty Free Price (DFP). South Korea’s duty free market – the world’s biggest – generated sales of around KR 22 trillion (US$17 billion) in 2023 with online sales representing around 30%, DFPR said, in underlining the importance of the service.
Some 50,000 SKUs across all categories will be listed on the site when it launches.
DFPR CEO Lee Chang Won commented: “Our website and mobile app (www.dutyfree-price.com) enables the easiest access and prompt comparison of the discounted member prices at online stores such as Shilla, Shinsegae, Lotte, Hyundai and so on.
“This is the biggest-ever innovation from a customer perspective that has happened in Korea’s travel retail industry because price is the most critical lever for purchase decision-making,” Lee claimed.
“The customer engagement with duty free shopping will change due to DFP’s fast, accurate and convenient shopping experience.”
Customers can check and compare prices real-time without even having to enter any membership ID or password. DFP’s online price service is open to anyone who wants to check and compare duty free prices – including with different shopping channels such as domestic department stores.
Online duty free offers lower prices than offline airport or downtown stores, DFPR noted. Until now, customers wanting to check prices had to first register with each online store as only members could check prices or purchase at discounted member prices.
DFPR pledged to expand the price comparison service beyond South Korea for the benefit of duty free shoppers. This will help create a seamless shopping experience and boost the travel retail industry’s growth, the company said. ✈
