SOUTH KOREA. SM Duty Free is to close its downtown store in Insadong, Seoul on 30 September. In a regulatory filing with the Korea Stock Exchange, the company outlined its plan to withdraw the licence and cease trading.
It opened in the popular tourist area of Insadong after being awarded a licence as a small-medium sized enterprise in 2015. The company had already suspended weekend operations at the store amid the COVID19 crisis.
An SM Duty Free representative said that high rental costs at Incheon International Airport and competition in the Seoul downtown duty free market has resulted in business conditions to deteriorate.
SM Duty Free said the decision to return its Seoul store licence was made to improve the financial structure of the company, and that it will focus on improving the profitability of its remaining Incheon International Airport stores.
As reported, the retailer withdrew a recent submission for the Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 duty free tender, having initially bid for SME packages DF8 and DF9; it currently runs the five-store DF9 contract. The move means the company will exit its T1 concession when its term expires in August, leaving it with stores in T2.
Click here for details of the 30-second ‘Clap for our Carers – Travel Retail ’ global initiative on Tuesday 31 March (#ClapforourCarersTravelRetail)
